PROLOGUE
I’ve been searching for the shattered remains of myself, trying to find all the little pieces, put my life back together. My world was fragmented, shattered. My life was a lie. Now all I want is the truth. No tricks. No pain. No lies. My mind is swimming with scattered memories of my forgotten life and I need to put them in order before I drown.
I could never remember where I came from, if I had a family, if they were still alive. I wondered if they knew why my life fell apart and why I have become… what I am now, if they even remember me. But I discovered a dark secret that showed me what I’d lost, who I am and things they never thought I’d find out and I’d never hoped to see. A secret so dark my mind locked me away, they locked me away, just so I’d never remember it, never remember myself, never remember what they made me do, who they forced me to become.
But now all I want is revenge. Revenge on all those who wronged me, caused me this pain, and forced me to become this monster, this freak. But they’ll soon realise how wrong they were to lock me away, how pointless it really was because the cost of their misdeed, this torture, this curse will be their lives as I exact my revenge. They’ll know the extent of the pain they have caused me. And just when they are on their knees, when they are begging for the cold embrace of death, just like I had many time for that soft whisper of relief, will I let them die.
But for all this to make sense, we have to go back to the beginning, back to when it all began, back to when I broke, back to when I wanted answers so bad that I’d kill for them, back to when I started to remember who I was by finding out what I’d become...
CHAPTER ONE
I stared at the wall dirty, blood stained wall of my padded cell, listening to the rhythmic beat of the water leaking from the room and hitting the floor. I could hear the mumbling of the night nurses, they were walking down my hall just like every night, always mumbling about something that wasn’t going their way. I watched as they slowly walked by my door, staring at me as they walked by.
"Does that little weirdo ever sleep?" one of them said, quite loudly.
"No, well I don't think so. Nobody has seen her sleep since she got here." the other replied.
"Cora, one of the day nurses, told me that she does sleep, just that 'a girl' watches over her while she does.” There was a pause as they slowed, shuffling past my door in an attempt to sneak a look through the tiny barred slit in the door. “If you ask me, she's just another psychotic bitch.
Their voices faded as they continued down the hall and turned the corner. I smiled, looking at the reflective, steel door. I saw a girl with long, black hair that went all the way to her waist. I saw her sitting on the cold floor, wrapped tightly in a straitjacket, locked away from the outside, her world nothing but four padded walls, the rhythmic dripping of water her only music. I stared at this girl, she stared back, her eyes a hollow blackness. A smiled crept onto her pale face, sending chills down my spine. Her head tilted to the side, looked at me with a mix of amusement and wonder.
"Why are you still here? Still trapped like an animal in a cage?" Her voice was dark, dangerous, but soft as velvet, trapping me in its mysterious trance. Hanging on her every word and holding my breath for the next velvet tone.
"I'm still here because...” I paused, thinking for a moment. Why am I still here? They can’t keep me here forever can they? “Well I don't know why I'm here, but I can't leave." I tugged at my straitjacket, as if to emphasis that I couldn't do anything, even if I wanted to. She let out a sigh.
"You are - We are so much better than this." Her smile faded "You could so easily break out of here, escape, and be free. You are more powerful and dangerous than you know, than they think. You just need to remember who you were, who you are, what you are."
"Powerful? What I am? What are yo-" Just then there was a sound, the familiar clanking of the medicine cart as it clanked down the hallways. Its wheels creaked as it was pulled through across the cold tile floor, the medicine bottles hitting against each other, an orchestra of sound, the theme song to the pain that was to come.
I panicked, scrambling back, my back hitting against the padded wall, the soft fabric moulding around my skinny frame. The smell of mildew and water rot surrounded me as a cloud of dust puffed out from the fabric, filling my nose and choking my throat. I hid in the shadows, hoping that the darkness would swallow me up and hide me from this demon forever, but I knew it wouldn’t. I looked back towards the girl, but she was gone. I envied her, envied how she could leave this place, disappear at any moment. I envied her freedom, I envied her safety. The sound of the key in the lock and the slow creak of the door as the lock turned made me sink even further back into the shadows. I watched as he walked into the room full the medicine cart after him. He slowly closed the door, the slow creaking sound of the locks turning made me flinch.
He was a fat, grotesque man, bald and no taller that 5ft 6. His skin was dirty with mud and very greasy. His teeth were yellow from his cheap cigars. He smelled of old greasy, sweat, cigar smoke and a few other smells that I don't care to mention or remember. He grabbed a needle, filling it was the same cloudy liquid as he always did. His face was a mask of enjoyment as he faced me. He laughed as he pinned me to the floor, stabbing me in the arm and pushing down on the plunger. In a matter of moments I could feel my body going numb, feel each limb fading from my control. First my toes, my feet, then my legs, it traveled up my body until I was completely paralyses. He slowly unbuckled my straight jacket, throwing it off into one of the dark corners of my cell. I stared, wide eyed as he unbuckled his belt and pulled down his zipper. He pulled at my once white, cotton bottoms. I tried to struggle, to scream but my limbs lay useless at my sides and my tongue lay heavy in my mouth.
* * * * * * *
I sat there in the dark, curled up into a ball. I felt dirty and gross. I stared blankly at my feet. I counted my toes over and over again. Ten toes, ten toes, ten toe, ten, ten, ten years, I have ten years. NO, NO, I have ten toes. I fought back the thoughts of how many years I've been here, how many times I’ve endured the same torture, day in, day out, the same routine and the same questions but never getting use to the pain that came after. I curled my hands into fists, my long nails cutting into the skin of my palms. Hot tears rolled down my pale cheeks, leaving trails in my grime covered skin. I placed my hands over my eyes, fresh blood mixing with my tears, tinting my cheeks red.
"It's time you go to sleep." She whispered.
My head shot towards the door, where she now sat. There she was again, sitting on the ground, eyes black hollows and her hair blowing around her as if she was standing in some phantom breeze. Her hair moved like a river that reflected back the mysterious glory of the night sky. Her smile was dangerous and her gaze was cold but I knew I was safe with her around. I slowly nodded, before lying down on the padded floor, letting my eyes drift closed, falling into a deep sleep.
* * * * * * *
I sat on the soft, green grass, a soft wind blowing my hair behind me. I closed my eyes, letting the soft breeze caress my skin. The smell of wild flowers filled my nose. I smiled as I spun, taking in the beauty of the field, enjoying every brush of the breeze and every ray of sunlight. I slowly walked towards a large oak tree that sat in the middle of the field. It's branched seemed to touch the sky as the ancient oak stood tall and proud in the remote clearing. The leaves were a lovely mix of gold, orange and red with the odd defiant green leave refusing to change with the season and keep its summer green. I always did love autumn; there was just such beauty and elegance in the season. I stretched my arms out, basking in the suns warmth once more. I sat at the base of the tree hiding in the shade of the leaves, my back against the thick, barky trunk of the tree, staring out into the multi-colored field. I sat here and watched the sky turn purple with the setting sun, setting the clouds ablaze with a vibrant pink as it began to dip below the horizon. I knew it was a dream, for only in a dream could I be happy, at peace and free in such a beautiful place. I knew I would never see a place like this in real life, for such a place doesn't exist, but it was my dream and I could do whatever I wanted, be whoever I wanted, just as long as I slept.
A butterfly flew past my face, but this one was different. I’d seen butterflies before, when I was aloud out in the institute’s garden, but this one was unlike any butterfly I’d ever seen. I watched as it circled the tree a couple times, the pink rays of the setting sun reflecting off its strange wings before gracefully floating up towards the top. I stood up staring after it. I then began to climb, pulling myself higher and higher off the ground, following the strange and mysterious butterfly. The butterfly settled on a thin branch a few feet above my head. I carefully stood up before jumping and grabbing onto another branch. I pulled myself up, carefully approaching the branch where it sat. I watched as its wings twitched. That's when I noticed what made this butterfly so strange and mysterious. Its wings were like none I had ever seen.
I reached out to touch it but before I could it shattered into a million pieces. The sky suddenly turned black, the soft breeze turned into a violent wind and it began to rain heavily. I looked up in shock. The green field was gone; it was replaced by a baron wasteland filled with fire, smoke and large black craters. I stared at the scene before me in horror, what was going on? I felt the tree starting to break apart. The autumn leaves began to rot and fall off, crumbling into nothing as it was rushed away by the wind. The bark began to peel and fall away in clumps; black goo began to ooze out from the now bare trunk and branches. I started to make my way down the tree as fast as I could, the black goo burning my hands as I went from branch to branch. I was soaked threw, there was black goo all over me and the rain was in my eyes, making it hard to see. I spit the sour tasting rain from my mouth, carefully stepped onto a branch but it broke off, taking me with it. The air was sucked from my lungs as I fell. I couldn't scream, I couldn't do anything but watch as the ground came closer and closer as I plunged towards the ground.
I shot bolt upright, sweat running down my face. My breath came out in short, fast gasps. My hearts was beating rapidly. My eyes darted around the room, looking for anything that was wrong. I looked towards the door, where she sat. She gazed at me, her eyes unfocused, before looking off at the other side of the room. I followed her gaze, but saw nothing. That's when I heard it, the soft fluttering of wings. I focused on the soft fluttering, waiting for my racing heart to slow, before looking back to when the fluttering was. I watched as the butterfly flew out from the shadows, it was the same one from my dream, but how’d it get in here? I watched as the fragile insect flew gracefully around my room. It hovered right in front of my face; its wings a beautiful red, but it was strange it looked like fire, like a living flame, but what made it unique was the skull shape, that formed whenever it closed it wings.
"You could escape" She whispered, an evil smile on her black lips. "You could be free."
I watched as she held out her hand, the butterfly landing on it without hesitation. I watched as it sat there peacefully, as if it was home. She eyed the butterfly, a twisted grin plastered on her face. I knew what she was thinking. She could crush it; kill it in one simple movement. I saw now how fragile life was, how it could be ended, so quick, so unknowingly. I saw the sick truth of live, we were all born to die, but I was sure as hell that I was NOT going to die here. Life is short, too precious, and it shouldn’t be wasted. I stared at her, a hint of knowing glistening in her eyes. A smile crept onto my face, matching hers.
"So, how do we escape?" She looked at me, her black eyes shining with a dangerous excitement.
CHAPTER TWO
With my straight jacket once again on, thanks to seven or eight nurses holding me down as they refastened it, I sat cross legged in the floor, facing the door, facing her. She sat across from me, her back against the door, legs stretched out in front of her and the mysterious butterfly sitting on the end of her left index finger. She examined it for a second before she gently blew on it, causing it to fly off her finger and disappear into the shadows once again. I smiled as she began telling me a story about a young girl, who learned a deadly secret.
"She was born in a time of a great war, her father, King Airmerd, was at war against the Great Wizards, led by his sworn enemy, Lord Croft. Both armies were great, both in size and skill. Her father had allied himself with the Giants of the North, the Elves of the East, and the Fae of the Burning Forests. But, Lord Croft had allied himself with the Witches of the West and the Necromancers of the Underground. Both sides had lost much and gained little over this. It was a war of pride, whoever won would not only gain control of Merlith, but have the honor of killing his enemy in a Public Skinning.
The war waged on for seventeen long and terrible years, rivers of blood drowned the land, and body piled as high as mountains littered the battle field. And hint of what beautiful land it used to be, long destroyed by the fire and death that now decorated it’s surface.
By now the princess had grown tired of hiding away in the castle, tired of being locked away like a caged animal, as per her father’s wishes. He’d said it was for her own protection, but she knew he was hiding away his one weakness. But she was no weakness of his, he was making her his weakness by not letting her fight, not letting her have a part in this war. For what kind of princess can love her land but not fight for it?
She had trained for years in secrecy, practiced and practiced until her bones were sore and she could take no more. She was driven by the will to survive, to live, to fight. Just as her mother had done 10 years before, when the necromancers broke through the defenses and came for them. Her mother had fought hard to protect her, she was a beauty as she did, with sword in hand she was like a Demon, fast, strong and deadly.
Her mother fought just long enough for the guards to come to her rescue. But, they did not come fast enough, her mother died that day, dies in her arms, the sound of her blood dripping to the floor and the shallow breathing of her mother as she slowly slipped away has haunted her ever since. The knife that has been plunged into her heart was all that was left of her killer. The princess has kept it as a reminder of how strong her mother was and of how strong she was going to become.
The day she lost her mother was the day she realized that she would not be afraid, she would train, she vowed she would become strong and that she would avenge her mother. To strike down the man who had killed her and make him regret ever being born.
And that is what she did. Once night, when the fog was thick and the moon was full, she slipped into the tunnels, tunnels so ancient they had been forgotten, even by the oldest of the Fae. She could hear the shouts of the battle that raged above her, feel the power and the aner of both sides as they stood toe to toe in a fight for their lives. She could smell the sulphur from the magical fires that hit the battle field and scattered the enemy.
She ran through the tunnels, her steps nothing but whispers as she shot through the darkness like a ghost. The sounds of battle faded as she moved deeper into the maze of tunnels. She’d been down her so many times in the past five years that she knew them by heart, knew every crack in the wall and dip in the path. And she knew the fasted way to the hiding place of Lord Croft and his army. Everyone knew that necromancers couldn’t use their powers during a full moon. So all the necromancers would be in the fort with Lord Croft, meaning her mother’s murderer was in there too.
When she surfaced, she was inside the centre perimeter of Lord Croft’s defences. She quickly sprinted into the darkness, blending in as a patrolman marched by. She quickly made her way to the slave entrance, which was lightly guarded. After disposing of the guards she quickly move towards the necromancer’s wing, where she planned to find him, and kill him with the same knife he used to kill her mother heart.
She slipped down hallway after hallway, looking for the man, she knew he was a necromancer, even though they all looked the same, dressed in black with short, black hair, she remembered his eyes, those soulless, black eyes rimmed in red. The had haunted her dreams for some time, but as her anger grew, those eyes were replaced with an image, An image of his blood spilling onto her hands, his dying heart beating in her hands, his final breaths like music to her very soul.
But that night--"
Her story was cut off by the familiar orchestra of medicine bottles as the cart crawled down the hall. She looked at me, examining my face, looking for any hints of what I was thinking or if I’d changed my mind but my mind was set and my thoughts were blank, free of fear. Knowing I didn't have much time I stood up, slamming my shoulder against the ground again and again until it became dislocated. I bit down on my lip to stop from screaming in pain with each fall. I then did the same to the other one. I quickly wriggled out of the jacket, letting it clatter to the ground. My eyes flicked towards the door.
"Hurry, he's nearly here." She whispered; her face a mask of complete calm.
I popped my arms back into their sockets with the maximum amount of pain before curling up in the dark corner, the straitjacket covering my front half, giving the impression that it was still on. The door creaked open and he walked in, once again dragging the medicine cart in behind him, locking the door behind him. He smiled evilly at me before filling the needle. He stalked towards me, pulling me up by my arm. The straitjacket clattered to the ground once again. I smiled at his shocked face, I watched as he went to plunged the needle into my arm, but he was slow. I grabbed his wrist and twisted it until I felt it snap, the porcelain white bone piercing his skin and jutting out, splattering a small amount of blood on my while t-shirt. I watched as he screamed, clutching his bloody wrist in his other hand. I watched as the blood seeped through his finger, looking like fast blossoming flowers as each drop hit the ground.
He charged at me but he was clumsy. I ducked to the side, causing him to collide with the wall, before falling to the floor. He stood up, his face red with anger. I slowly picked up the needle, rolling it in my fingers before I lunged at him. Stabbed it into his arm, and then slowly pressing down on the plunger. She laughed in delight, her black eyes ablaze with amusement as he swayed from left to right. I watched as his legs wobbled and strained to keep him upright before he collapsed into a pile of flesh on the floor, unable to move, unable to fight back. I slowly made my way over to the cart, scanning threw the small drawers, reading the various labelled on the random bottles before I found that I was looking for. I carefully pulled the small blade from the cart, watching as it shone in the light of the dirty bulb that hung dangerously from the roof. His eyes widened at the sight of the blade, fear clearly reflected back at me.
"Do it. Do it." She whispered in my ear, her cold breath causing the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on end. "Go on, do it, end it. END HIM!"
I stared at him for a moment, remembering how he torture me, how much of a monster he is, how much he deserves this. I pressed the blade to his neck, dragging it across gently, leaving a thin red line in its wake. I watched as a small amount of crimson blood oozed from the small wound. I pressed harder and continued to drag the blade across his neck until I’d made a complete circle. His blood pooled out of him, splashing warm against my skin. I could feel his life drifting away, fell him dying. I watched as his breathing slowed and his heart stopped. I stepped out of the pool of blood that had formed around my bare feet, quickly grabbing the keys off of his belt, before I ran to the door, trying key after key before I found the right one.
Gripping the scalpel tightly I stepped out into the hallway. I checked that the coast was clear before jogging down the left hallway. I followed the badly lit hallway until I came to a 'T' junction. Suddenly a piercing screech erupted, seeming to come from everywhere.
"Attention All Staff! We Have An Escaped Patient!!! All Nurses Please Evacuate The Building, While All Security Report To The Fourth Floor. Be Advised The Patent Is Armed And Very Dangerous!!" Shit, it was an alarm.
I could hear the sound of running footsteps coming from the left, so I took off running in the other direction. I stole a quick glance behind me, mentally cursing myself when I saw the trail of bloody footprints that I’d left behind me. Breaking into a sprint I ran down the hallway, the sound of my bare feet slapping off of the tile floor echoing off the walls. A set of large double door appeared at the end of the hall. I shoved them open, running into the room.
* * * * * * *
The room went dark as the doors swung shut behind me. I ran my hand along the wall, frantically searching for a light switch. The lights flickered on, buzzing slightly with the sudden surge of power that passed through them. I swiftly glance around the room, after a moment of thought I figured out it was the cafeteria. I quickly maneuvered myself through the maze of tables and scattered chairs before ducking into the kitchen. I quickly walked over to the large walk-in freezer, looking for somewhere to hide. As I walked in I was immediately consumed by a freezing wind. I shivered but continued further into the freezer. There were large pieces of meat strung to the roof by hooks on metal chains; some were freshly as they had a small pool of blood below them but others had black patches covering most of the carcass as they rotted from the inside out, filling the confined space of the freezer with a sickening smell. The sound of running feet and frantic shouts coming closer, drew me away from the smell of the meat as I knew if I didn't find somewhere better to hide now I was going to be put back in that cell.... or worse.
I quickly scrambled out of the freezer, ducking behind one of the preparation tables, my heart pounding at a million miles an hour. I peeked up, making sure there was nobody around. Smiling, I placed the scalpel on the metal table before grasping the cool plastic handle of the butchers knife that sat embedded in a wooden chopping board. Within a few seconds I’d wiggled it out of the wood and I grasped the handle tight, examining the pristine blade.
"That will do some damage." She whispered, walking out from behind one of the steel freezers. Her gaze then shifted towards the door. "Good, they’re almost here." She laughed wickedly before walking back into the shadows, her laughter continuing to echo off the walls even when she was gone.
"Don’t get killed." Was the last thing I heard before the doors burst open, slamming violently against the wall as heavily armed security guards ran in. I sunk down, kneeling on the cold tile floor, holding my breath. I stayed silent as they got into formation, their guns scanning every visible inch of the room from the doorway.
"She's in here, she's cornered. There is only one way out and if the little psycho wants to leave, she'll have to go through all of us first." A man, probable the head of security, bellowed, challenging me.
I peeked out from the side of the table; there were about twenty-six security members, somewhere armed with double-barrel shotguns, some with Desert Eagles and others with semi-automatic rifles. They were all wearing mud brown bulletproof vests, heavy duty arm guards, steel toed black leather boots and a plastic helmet with a clear plastic visor. If I was going to get past them I'd have to go for the legs or neck. Knowing I couldn't take them all at once, I looked for something to distract them with, something that would cause them to separate out, making them easier to pick off, one by one.
I spotted a collection of bottles, still full with champagne, vodka, white and red wine. Closing my pale hand around the narrow neck of one of the bottles, I threw it at the wall opposite me, the wine staining the grey walls a fruity red. Startled by the sudden sound that shattered the eerie silence, the guards jumped, their guns facing towards the sound. Holding my breath, I waited, hoped that the head of security was as stupid as he was cocky. If he dared to openly challenge me then he'd better be prepared to fight like his pathetic life depended on it; which it did. With the slight movement of his head four men broke out of formation and moved cautiously towards the arc-way that led into the kitchen.
Shifting onto the balls of my feet, I griped the knife handle tighter, the groves in the plastic digging into the palm of my hand. I stayed silent, blending into the shadows as they passed by me, splitting up to cover the small route ways that were made by the different tables and steel containers. I stayed low as I stalked up behind on of them, swiftly jamming the knife into the soft skin of his neck, ripping his jugular open. His hand flew to the wound, trying to stop the bleeding. His cries of warning nothing more than a gargle of blood and mashing of teeth, as he slowly fell to the ground, nothing more than a lifeless corpse. I quickly went after the other ones, knowing that they would soon find the body of their dead friend if I didn't cut them down as well.
The others fell just like the first. They never saw me coming, didn't even have enough time to see their life flash before their eyes. I thrived in their deaths, smiled as their blood warmed my skin and stained my clothes. I loved the feel of their life faltering between my fingers. I marveled at the bodies I'd left behind, watching as their eyes rolling into the back of their head, showing nothing more than a cloudy whiteness. I felt a joy as I turned towards the remaining twenty-one guards, who still stood in the cafeteria.
I heard a shallow buzzing noise coming from one of the dead bodies that lay at my feet. Following the sound, I maneuvered through the pools of blood and sprayed limbs. I knelt down, rummaging through their pockets, pulling out a thick, black brick, I stood up. I scrutinized the object, it had a faintly glowing screen, a large rubber button on the side, a steel knob on the other and on the front there was a grey plastic face covered with little holes. The object seemed familiar. Absent minded I pressed down on the button then quickly released it. I quickly picked up a rifle and a shotgun from the pile of bodies before I slowly made my way back towards the freezer full of meat. Silently slipping back inside, I pressing my back to the wall, easing the button on the black brick down, I slowly brought it toward my mouth.
"Hello, Captain." I whispered into the device, feeling the title fitted him in the given situation, before releasing the button.
"You little...." I cut him off my pressing down on the button once more.
"Now, now Captain. Don’t go saying things you'll regret. Like that little challenge you started earlier. Not a very wise move if you ask me."
"I didn't ask, you bitch. What have you done to my men!?" I let a light laugh escape my lips.
"You don't need me to tell you, you and all your friends are going to find out soon enough."
I could hear the sound of muffled whispers as they all began to talk among themselves, panicked and scared. I slung the rifle strap over my shoulder and picked up the shotgun. I stared out at the open doors of the freezer, eager for their end.
CHAPTER THREE
I stalked out of the freezer, the tips of my hair damp with melting frost. I stuck to the shadows, as I made my way back into the kitchen. I slithered my way toward the opening in the wall, bracing my back against the cold wall that was beside it. Through the large gap, I could see them, they were now tightly huddled together, and all guns were pointed at the two entryways; the door and the window gap. I shivered as the remaining coldness that still clung to my body disappeared as my blood flowed rapidly through my veins. My heart beat increasing with the anticipation of the kill, my body enjoying the long overdue adrenalin high.
Shotgun held tightly in my grip, I moved into view, swiftly taking out two men that flanked the left side of the formation. Their bodies fell to the ground, their hands reaching towards the gaping wound the shotgun had left in their neck. I quickly ducked as they open fired, the bullets flying overhead with an almost inaudible whooshing sound. I quickly reloaded the shotgun, the shells falling into place with ease. Moving into the doorway, I took out two more men; their bodies falling just like the other two, before dropping the gun at my feet and pulling the rifle off my shoulder and open firing on the remaining seventeen men. All of them ducked for cover, turning over the plastic tables to use as makeshift shields, but others fell, dead before they even had a chance to turn. The rifle shuttered as I pressed down on the trigger, but nothing happened.
“Damn, out of ammo.” I muttered, throwing the rifle to the floor.
Cursing myself silently, I tried to duck back behind the wall but I wasn't fast enough and a bullet graze my left thigh and another went straight into my left arm, the bullet lodging itself somewhere between the muscle and bone of my left arm. I cried out as I lent against the wall. Blood was flowing freely from the wounds. I bit my lip as I held my injured arm. I quickly ripping the bottom off of the blood stained shirt, rapping the strip tightly around the bullet wound, hoping it would help stop the bleeding until I had time to deal with it later. Crawling back to the bodies that lay on the floor of the kitchen, I rummage through their pockets again, looking for something, anything. Fingers clasped around cold metal. Smiling, I crawling over towards where the wine bottled lay. Shuffling threw the bottles, I found it, ripping another piece of cloth from my shirt, stuffing it into the neck of the bottle. Flipping the metal lighter open, I lit the cloth, throwing it into the cafeteria and behind the table that concealed the most guards.
The bottle smashed, causing the vodka to spray everywhere, before catching fire. The men floundered as the fire melted the plastic visor onto their faces, blistered their skin black as they tried in vain to put out the unyielding flames. The screams that escaped their mouths was like music to my ears, the only music that I've wanted to hear for the past ten years. Since the day that they closed the door to the cell behind me, I wanted to spill their blood, to feel in on my face, arms, hands. I smiled wickedly as the fire ravaged on. The flames licked at the tables slowly melting them, the fire passing from table to table. The room became increasingly warm, making the remaining four men sweat. When the fire had died completely; having no more fuel to burn, I took a deep breath, preparing myself for the final stand.
Removing the blade form the elastic waist on my cotton pants, I stalked across the cafeteria, the blackened floor still warm from the kisses that the glorious flames had graced upon it. I cut down the three men that tried to protect their precious Captain, their blood warming my hands that had begun to go numb from blood loss. I kicked the gun from the Captains hand, as he tried to point the barrel at my heart, sending it flying into one of the hot pools of melted plastic on the other side of the room. I pressed my foot onto his chest, pressing down until I felt four or five of his ribs crack. I knew one of them had punctured his lungs by the way he gasped for breath, clawing hopelessly at my foot, leaving nothing but red trails on my bare skin as blood bubbled into his mouth, staining his teeth red. I smiled as I placed the flat side of my knife blade against his cheek, turning his face to look me in the eyes, his eyes were the ones she'd been looking for. I remembered how, ten years ago, being nothing more than a low level guard, he had shoved me into the cell. Slamming the cold iron door behind him, leaving the tiny seven year old girl to suffer at the hands of an insurable pig, who in the end got what he deserved. It was just too bad I couldn't have dragged out that baster’s suffering, return the favour. He was just lucky that I had other things planned, because if I didn't, he wound have suffered more that the quick death that I gave him in that cell.
"P-P-Please." He gasped, blood starting to spill out from his lips, staining the floor below him.
"Now, now, pleading won't get you anywhere. You knew that the moment you heard I escaped." My voice was strange, something I didn't recognize. “That’s why you tried to kill me.”
"I-I-" I placed the blade against his lips, cutting off his sniveling cry for mercy.
"Shh. How about you shut up with your sniveling and die with some dignity, humm?"
A fire blazed behind my eyes as I made a deep cut in his leg. He cried out. I made another cut in his other leg, making him cry out once more. This continued for several minutes, until he was cut and bleeding from every cut I made on every inch of his body. Tears ran out of his slit eyelids and down his cheeks, mixing with the blood, his blood that covered his face like a mask. Growing bored with his endless pleas for mercy, I stabbed the knife into his stomach, gutting him like a fish before watched as his innards fell out of the jagged slit, spilling onto the floor with an amusing, almost comical, splat, coating my feet in another layer of blood. Stepping around the slippery intestines and bloody organ, I made my way towards to the door, knowing that once I stepped out of this room, I would begin my revenge, starting with destruction of this ‘asylum’.
* * * * * * *
I walked down hallway after hallway, following an internal compass that seemed to be leading me toward nothing. I stepped into another hallway, identical to the others. The hallway was again covered with doors that led to empty cells, dozens of hallways, hundreds of cells and they were all empty. It was like I was the only patient left in this hell hole that had once been full to the brim. I remember it clearly, walking down the hallways, being escorted to my cell where I'd spend ten years of my life wasting away. There were madmen who reached dirt blackened hands through the barred window, women who sat in the corners of their cell rocking back and forth mumbling nonsense and screaming at nothing and feral children who had been left in the wild, only to be discovered years later to be more like the animals that roamed the forest around them than human. I never did know why I ended up here. Just that one day I was put in a white van, driven into a forest and left in that cell to rot, never to see my parents ever again. Parents whose names I forgot and whose faces as nothing but a blur in a mind of shattered thoughts in a world of darkness
I looked at the empty cells that lined both side of the hallway. Was I the only one left? Left to suffer such pain and such torture at their hands alone? I kicked the closest door to me, the forced of the kick causing the plastic nameplate to fall of the door and clatter noisily onto the floor. I stared at the grey piece of plastic for a moment, wondering who had last lived in the cell I curiously picked up the nameplate and turned it over in my hand. ‘Charlie Greysmore’ was scrawled onto the plastic in messy handwriting. I remembered him; he was the only other person here that was close to my age when I got here. He had a vicious hatred for animals and he was nicknamed ‘The Reaper’ because of the way he treated them.
Whenever he was out in the asylum garden, which has long since withered and died, he would somehow lose his ‘nurse’ in the maze of overgrown grass and defiant wildflowers that wormed their way up through the cracks in the stone path and wonder into the nearby forest that surrounded the asylum. They would spend six or seven hours in the forest looking for him, a line of a hundred or so men looking up every tree, in ever cave, under every rock in every rabbit hole, leaving to leaf upturned and no shadow unlit. When they would eventually find him, the scene before them was always the same. He would be sat in a clearing, the rays of the seasons sun breaking through the gaps in the tree canopy and shining down on the massacre before them, making the lake of blood that decorated the clearing glisten like some forgotten ruby.
The shredded corpses of animals scattered the clearing. Baby rabbits with their necks snapped so viciously that the only thing that kept it attacked to the body were thin lines of pink muscle, hung from the low hanging branches of every tree. Birds, gutted like fish and used to decorate his body like some decaying feathered coat. Even the rare fawn or goat, its innards spread around the clearing like bloody confetti and its decapitated head stuck on a sick, was found among the collect of other animals, some so brutally beaten and cut up you could even tell what kind of animal it was.
They had even once caught him in the middle of killing an eagle. Two of its wings had be mauled off with a jagged rock, its tongue had been pulled out and some of its feathers had been plucked from its body so viciously that the skin had been ripped off, but it was still alive, but not for much longer. The men had arrived just in time to see him slowly crush its skull underfoot, feeling its pain and terror, sure it would have tried to fly away if its wings hadn't been lying beside him in a pool of blackening blood. They watched as its eyes bulged before popping right out of their sockets, watched as the skull caved in slightly before shattering completely and watched as the brains leaked out over the bright spring grass and onto his foot.
I never saw Charlie again after that, he just disappeared. Some said he escaped into the forest, living off the meat from his animal victims. But others say he was cut up into little pieces and used to fertilize the roses in the doctor’s private garden, and in a place like this, it wasn't so far off the truth. The roses did look brighter and fuller that summer.
Placing the nameplate back on the door, I continued on my way down the hall, stopping every now and then at a cell that help a familiar name and remembered their unique story, but always being reminded that I couldn't remember mine.
The hallways seemed to become cleaner, newer; the walls were clean of blood, void of any of the mold that decorated the walls further back. The smell of chemicals burned my nose and throat as I walk into another hallway. But this one was different from the others; plastic chairs lay along both sides of the wall. There were pictures of what I guessed was this building along the walls, making it look like the best place for your loved ones, like they would be well cared for, that they would be happy. I smashed my fist against them, the glass shattering and the picture clattered to the ground with the force. I smashed each picture, one after another, my anger growing with each strike, with each picture that smashed and fell to the ground.
I continued down the hall, glass crunching underfoot, until I came to a door. It was a plain dark wooden door and beside it there was a plaque that read. 'Staff Locker Room. Authorised Personal ONLY' Looking down at myself I knew I needed a change of clothes, going out covered in blood and dirt is probably not the best way to blend in. The lockers that lined the walls all had names on them, typed onto white labeling stickers and placed on the doors. It seemed that the men all had lockers on one side and the woman had the other. I opened locker after locker, looking for something that would fit. Sighing I picked out a black tank top, a pair of white skinny jeans, a pair of black tennis shoes, while also borrowing a bra and underwear, before slipping into the showers, the warm water feeling like silk over my grim covered skin. Taking a deep breath, I let my muscles relax, letting the water and steam soothe me into a long awaited peace.
I left my hair down, the tips still wet from the shower, dampening the back of my top. I shuffled through all the lockers, taking money, credit cards, car keys, anything that would help me once I got out of here before stuffing it all into my pockets. I notice there was another door at the other side of the room. Curious I open the door, surveying the room that lay ahead of me. There were a multitude of blue plastic hairs scattered around the room, some in small circles and others on their own or by a table littered with papers or empty coffee cups. There was also a door that led to a small office, which could be seen through a large window. It had bookcases, a table and chair, an old computer and a couple filing cabinets. I began to walk towards the door but somebody grabbed my shoulder, pulling me back and away from the door.
Spinning around, knife in hand, I ready to lash out at whoever it was. But I stopped short when I saw her, her eyes soft, pleading, the tip of my knife a few inches away from her heart. But I knew the plea I saw in her eyes was not from the knife being too close, she was hiding something, something she didn't want me to know. I looked back towards the office, staring in through the glass. Her grip on my arm tightened, keeping me in place. I glared at her, wrenching my arm free from her grip before walking over to the office. I took a few tries, but the door finally opened after a few persuasive kicks. I looked through the desk draws, but there was nothing more than a couple of porno magazines, a couple empty pill containers with faded labels and a small, plain silver, metal key. I turned towards the filing cabinets, pulling on the draws but they were locked. Curious I took the key from the desk draw, I put it into one of the locks that line the side of the grey metal cabinets. Turing the key, I heard the faint click of the locks. I open the draw, it was empty. I moved onto the next draw, it was empty. The same with the third and fourth drawer, empty. Opening the last drawer, there was only one file. I pulled it out, placing it on the desk before sitting on the chair.
The file lay open in front of me, I stared at the page, and it was my file. I could barely believe what I was reading. Even though I didn't make it past the first page, it was all I needed. “Skylar Strowth deemed mentally unstable at the age of seven after the horrible incident........ And sent; by hear willing parents.........; to the Forest Mount Institute, treated by Doctor Ian Harold." I couldn't believe that my parents, my own flesh and blood had sent me to this, this place. What could I have done? What could a seven year old girl have done to deserve such a fate, such horror? I grew angry, I couldn't even find out what I'd done, or who my parents were because it was all covered up by thick black lines. Through my blinding rage, I knew only one thing, my plan, that I was going to get my revenge, I was going to make everyone who was involved in putting me in here pay and caused my suffering, to feel the pain, know my torture, see my fear and see what they have made me become, starting with dear old Doctor Ian Harold.
CHAPTER FOUR
For ten years I suffered here, for five of those years I was the only one here, the only person left to suffer in this hell. But no more, this place was going to burn and I was going to light the fuse. I grabbed the large bottles of bleach, the cleaning spray, anything I could find that would make this place burn. I even found some fuel in the very back of the supply closet. I unscrewed the lid of one of the bleach bottle, letting it pour onto the ground. Leaving a trail as I went, I walked into the 'Treatment' part of the institute.
* * * * * * *
"Now Skylar, we are going to put these pad onto your head, ok? Then we are going to ask you a few simple questions?" The tall, man with the white beard said, placing the cold jelly pad things on both sides of my head.
"What are they for if you're only going to be asking me question?" I asked, getting scared. Why was I here?
I look around at the black cement walls, the only light in the room, coming from one light that swung freely above me, distorting the shadows, making them seem to come alive.
I soaked the walls, the bleach running down the cement like thick, grey tears.
I tried to sit up, but they tied down my arms and legs with these thick leather straps, making them really tight. The room smelt funny, like burnt smelly toast. I struggled against the straps trapping me, I wanted out, I wanted to find my mammy and daddy and tell them to take me home. I wanted to out; I didn't want to be here.
I drowned the table, the soaked leather straps dripping bleach onto the floor.
"Let me go, I don't want to do this. I want my mommy." Tears were running down my face as the doctor told the lady that was dressed all in white, to turn the voltage to medium. Medium? Voltage? I pulled at the straps again, the leather cutting at my skin.
"Now, Skylar. Do you know why you're here?" I shook my head fiercely.
I let out a scream as a painful heat went through my body. I screamed, but it was gone as soon as it began. Taking a deep breath, I looked at the man with the beard, who just stared at me disappointed.
I covered the dammed equipment.
"I won't ask again. Do you know why you're here?" I shook my head again. Another painful heat went through my body. My screams echoing around the room.
By the time I was done there wasn't an inch of that room that wasn't ready to burn.
* * * * * * *
"Just lie still while I get everything prepared." His breath was foul, like rotting meat.
I stared up at the white, tile roof. My mind wondering, shielding itself for what’s to come. I knew what he was going to do. I focused on the flies that were flying into the lights, making a sizzling sound as they made contact with the hot surface of the bulb. I was always fascinated with the fact that the flies knew what was going to happen when they hit the bulb but they still went towards it, again and again and again. Never learning their lesson. Maybe that’s why they sent me here, because I never learn my lesson, but what lesson do I have to learn.
Then came the buzzing of the razor. He pressed it to my scalp, removing clump after clump of my hair, letting it fall onto the ground, until I was bald. It made it easier to see the skull this way.
"Nurse, can you strap down the patient please?" Again the same familiar leather straps held me down as he pulled the metal hand drill from the box, dry blood caked the drill, but bits of coppery rust broke through the black, crusty blood.
"Now, this is going to hurt you more than it's going to hurt me." He laughed a sick maniacal laugh that sent a chill down my spine. I felt the tip of the drill press into my scalp, drilling deeper and deeper into my skull, my blood running onto the table, pooling around me like a sunset fog. My world turning black at the edges, fading into nothing as the drill broke the bone.
I backed out of the room, staring at the chemicals that glistened off of the ‘medical equipment’ and dripped of the ‘surgery’ table and onto the blood stained floor.
* * * * * * *
I woke up shivering, but when I opened my eye I couldn't see. It was black, dark. I could feel a breeze; it smelt of leaves, grass and rain. Oh how I missed the rain, I missed how when it hit the ground, it looked like fast blossoming flowers. I missed how it looked on the leaves as the first light of the morning made it glitter. I could also hear birds, their music tweet, the faint flapping of wings. I envied their freedom. I envied them. I stood up, looking for a window, or a vent. The sound was coming from somewhere, if I could just reach out, just feel the wind on my skin, if for only a second.
The door was flung open, the light that shun in from the hall outside blinding me. There he stood, the man with the beard, I still didn't know his name, even after three years. My hand travelled to the wound in my head, this one spot where my hair didn't grow back, the place where he had drilled. But whatever he was looking for he didn't find, and he was going to continue with me until he got it. As I looked at him, an malevolent grin on his lips, that’s when I knew, even at the young age of seven I knew that my pain was only beginning.
* * * * * * *
I threw the bleach bottle in anger, making it hit the wall, splashing the last of the pure bleach everywhere. Bleach began to pour out as it lay on the ground, lolling slightly from left to right before slowly losing momentum and stopped. I stalked from the room, walking down hallway after hallway, crisscrossing over and over again, leaving a trail of flammable chemicals in my wake. Finally making it to the main entrance, my blacked out file in hand, I opened up the keg of fuel; diesel, and began pouring in around the room, trailing it out the front door and onto the earthy ground, staining the sundried earth a dark brown. Taking the lighter out once again, I lit it, marvelling at the beauty of the dancing flame before dropping it onto the diesel trail, lighting a snake of flames that ravished the building. I watched as it burned, glass shattering outwards, walls scorched black as flames licked their surface, the whole dammed building falling in on itself as the it’s terrible history went with it, all but the memories that were scared into my brain. Looking out into the mysterious forest that surrounded me, I took a deep breath, filling my lungs, my first breath of freedom, my first breath of a new life and my first breath of revenge.
* * * * * * *
The trees whizzed by nothing more than a smear of greens as we drive down the dirt road. Dust flanked the car as we crashed over the uneven surface of the forgotten path. The sun was beginning to rise; the sky was streaked with purple and pink as the last sliver of night drifted away. We'd been traveling on these dirt roads for hours, each road only bringing us onto another one that looked the exact same. It seemed that this place was somewhere in the mountains, in a forest, somewhere dense and overgrown where they couldn't be found easily and somewhere far enough away from any town or city so that nobody could hear us scream.
The throbbing in my shoulder brought my thought away from the peaceful morning. I rolled my shoulder, as if somehow that would get rid of the pain. I took a quick glance at the wound, I knew the bullet was still in there, imbedded somewhere in between the muscle and tissue. I also knew that if I didn't get it out soon I was in trouble.
"We should pull over. Get that bullet..."I glared at her, making her stop her sentence. I already knew this but we had to keep going.
"I already know that Clarisse but we don't have time for this." I growled, looking back at the road.
"What did I say about using my name!" She yelled, sounding more animal than human. I stomped hard on the brake, making the 4X4 H2 Hummer jolt to a stop.
"I don't care what you said Clarisse, we are out of that place and I don't need you telling we what to do. I'm going to deal with the bullet when we find some place we can stay. So until then can you shut the hell up?!?"
By now we were nose to nose, and if it went any further it wouldn't be a pretty sight.
"Fine." She pulled away, pulling a map out of the glove box so fiercely that it tore down the middle, making it look like the mouth of a vicious monster, and beginning to look for something that would give up any indication of where we were. Lying back in my seat, I stared up at the sky, watching as the birds flew and dove between the surrounding trees. I watched as the dew covered grass glistened, looking like diamonds. I opened my window, letting the damp morning air brush against my skin, while filling the Hummer with the blissful sound of rustling leaves and the chirping of hidden birds. I waited for everything to crumble around me, waited to wake up, for this to all be but a dream, to find myself back in that cell waiting day after day of torture until I finally gave up, forever. But it all stayed the same, the wind still blew through my hair, the grass still glittered and the birds still flew high in the sky. I took a breath, giving a shaky laugh as the reality of this finally sunk in.
"I think we're somewhere here." I looked over at Clarisse, who was focused on the map, trailing her left index finger over the colored lines that peppered the paper.
"You sure?"
"Well it's a local map and it's the only remote enough place to hide that damned Asylum. So yeah, I'm sure."
"No need to be so fucking sarcastic." I murmured under my breath. Feeling her eyes on me as I began moving the jeep back down the road, a cloud of dust erupting out from behind the jeep as the wheels spun on the dry dirt road.
"So, the closest town to here is... a small place called Blackstone. It's about an hour’s drive from here...” Her voice trailed off as she traced the roads again and again.
Blackstone, at least it’s somewhere to start looking for Dr. Harold. So when we arrive there first thing we do is find somewhere nice to stay, because I have a feeling we're be staying there for a while, because if I know Ian Harold and boy do I, he’s going to be hard to find once he gets wind that I- we escaped.
* * * * * * *
The sky was dark as we passed by the quant wooden welcome sign that sat on the side of the road just outside the town. It had said “Welcome to Blackstone” in elegant script. There were also intricate spirals and delicate picture painted around the writing, the paint looked fresh and brand-new, thought the wood was rotted and black around the edges. Who would re-paint a sign but not replace the wood?
I stared up at the blackening sky, it was only about 1pm, why did it look like it was almost night? It took three hours to drive here; not one, but that didn’t explain why it looked almost night here. We’d passed by four or five towns on our way here but Clarisse just said “It wasn’t safe here” and “We need to get to Blackstone.” I was too tired to argue, so we kept going despite my confusion as to why she wanted to get to Blackstone so badly.
I knew something was different here from the moment we drove past that sign. It was as if a fog had cleared from my mind, my thought became clear, even with my body threatening to shut down at any moment from the amount of blood I’d lost; and was still losing. The trees that framed the road, making it look like a brilliant green tunnel, seemed to lean towards up as we drove down the road. Their branches looking like skinny fingers reaching to caress the jeep. There were few birds in the sky and the ones that were there looked to be mostly black ravens; almost completely blending into the strange afternoon sky.
My skin began to crawl as the outline of the town came into view, every cell in my body screamed at me to turn around, to flee. I kept my eyes peeled as we slowly entered the town, I knew I was being paranoid, but I could help the feeling that something had happened here, something evil and dark. Shops of all sorts lined the street, there was a white-washed library that looked to be part of the original town structure, there was a Starbucks and lots of clothing boutiques as well as a couple of unlabeled buildings. Everyone on the street seemed completely oblivious to the large jeep that barrelled down the road. We passed by a large High School, a Pre-School, a cop station, a skate park and a local mall. Everyone seemed to know everyone in this town; your darkest secrets come to light, no private life. I didn't know how long I would last in such a small town like this without somebody finding out where I'd come from and what I'd done, before having the cops lock me away... or worse. It was safe to say I wasn’t looking forward to seeing how this small town welcomed strangers.
I saw a sign for a ‘Blackstone Manor Apartments’.
Feeling an invisible pull, I turned the Hummer onto the well hidden driveway. The trees that framed both sides of the stony path, cast a dark shadow across the path, making it seem like it went on forever. The stones crunched and grinded against each other as the tyres cautiously move down the driveway. The birds seemed to go silent and the sun ray that poked through the thick tree canopy, disappear as we approached the end.
The thick leaves thinned before me, revealing the most elegant building I’d ever seen. Not like I’d seen many buildings being trapped in my cell, but that’s beside the point. The majestic mansion towered above me, the tips of its towers seeming to push high into the heavens and reach for the starts that hide behind the layer of soft cotton clouds that hid us from their majesty.
Two large towers framed the large house, their spires towering above the rest of the mansion. Large floor to ceiling windows covered the visible walls of the grand house, with light black curtains blocking my view to the inside. The house was made of a mysterious looking grey stone. Small patches of dark ivy crawled up the walls and frame some of the windows, like a natural decoration, giving the house an even more of a mysterious vibe. Large white marble pillars stood tall and proud in a line along the front entry way. Behind those pillars stood large, black oak double doors with an elegant gold trim around the edges. The mansion stood four stories tall with a sleek black slate roof. A large fountain decorated the front of the house; the statue that stood in the middle flickered in the sunlight as the sun’s rays reflected off of the running water, making it come alive in the most beautiful way.
I circled the hummer around the large fountain till I was parked right in front of the main doors. I slowly climbed out for the Hummer, the pain in my shoulder and the lass of blood cause my vision to darken and my world to tilt. I slipping on a rain coat, that I found in the back seat of the hummer, to cover my breeding shoulder. It was heavy but soft and was only slightly too big, with the sleeves only slightly covering my hands and the hem of the jacket sitting just below my ass. I zipped it up most of the way before slowly making my way up to the front door.
I stood in front of the large doors. I studied the delicate decoration of gold that seemed to have been hand painted with extreme care onto the wood. I wondered how many hours had gone into painting those spirals, leaves and flowers. I took a deep breath, before firmly knocking my fist against the door.