"Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory". (Dr. Suess)
The ground below me was cold, uncomfortable, and damp. I could hear water slowly dripping on the hardened surface that I rested on. A musty odor circulated the air causing me to choke down my vomit. As I opened my eyes, I was met with a dim fluorescent ceiling light that caused my eyes to rapidly open and shut.
Where the fuck am I?
Propping myself up using my elbow, I scanned what I now knew was a small basement. There was a toilet in the right corner, and directly across from it was a bed or cot. Whatever it was, it was fucking disgusting. There were brown stains that appeared to look like shit or dirt. It was too hard to make out from this distance. A small wooden stool barely touching the wall was on the far left of the basement, and hanging above me oddly were silver chains.
A table northeast to the stool looked stocked with weapons and smaller items that didn't look familiar to me. Pushing myself into a sitting position, I immediately rocked back, catching myself as vertigo hit me like a freight train. I moved my hand to my head, squinting my eyes from the sudden discomfort.
What happened to me?
Think, Helena. Think.
What was the last thing that I remembered?
We were leaving the witch's house, and Elijah and I pulled to the side of the road. We were talking about.....we were talking about the council. And the humans enslaved by them and the murders that could happen. I asked him if he would stand by and let that happen to me. He told me that I was his life and would never let that happen to me. He would protect me. We were....kissing. Yes, we were kissing and then.....and then...
Realization hits me, and a look of horror plastered my face.
It shook me to the core. I remember now. A large silver arrow was protruding through Elijah's chest. Blood. So much blood. Pain in his eyes. Pain in my heart. He was dead. What little air in my lungs was rapidly escaping as the weight of my reality sunk in. After everything he and I have gone through, I again lost him. But this time, instead of following him into the afterlife, I am left alone in the cold, my entire world devoid of warmth and light. He took the essence of my existence when he took his last breath in this cruel and heartless world.
I laid back down on the icy, rough ground welcoming the feel of the broken stone against my skin. I lay there silently crying, running my hands across the cracks as if it were a roadmap to the breakage inside of my own heart. How could this happen? Things were going to be different this time. I believed we would conquer our enemies in this life and live out our days in a blissful romance. How foolish could I have been?
Life isn't a blissful existence. It's an agonizing, excruciating, gut-wrenching creation. There are no roads that lead to a happy ending. No, it's a winding staircase that loops in an endless cycle of nothingness. Pointless. Without him, I no longer have the need or want to live. At this moment, I understood how people could get so hopeless that they want to give up. Because that is precisely how I feel right now. I don't want to go on anymore. I want to join him where the heavens and earth meet.
I don't know how long I lay there wallowing in my self-destruction before I heard the creaky sound of a door being opened. The footsteps were light as they approached me, and I didn't even look up when my captor's shoes became visible. My body was here, but my mind was somewhere else. The person cleared their throat.
"I am sorry, Helena. This is, unfortunately, a necessary evil. But I promise soon the pain you're feeling will be gone." I moved my eyes slowly, and once my eyes met my captor, a rage swelled from deep inside of me. They almost sounded sincere, and the female voice was very familiar.
Fucking Sarafina.
I didn't think I could move as fast as I did with the physical and mental pain I felt. But before my hands could snake around her neck, I was knocked 2 feet backward, slamming into a wall by a gush of wind.
"Why the hell are you doing this?" I asked as blood pummeled from my mouth and nose.
She took a deep breath as she slowly stalked towards me.
"There is so much you still don't know nor remember, but I have the time now to educate you properly. My people have been hunted, tortured, and murdered for centuries because we were different. We were afraid. It wasn't until we were on the brink of extinction that we decided to tap into that power that other creatures were right to fear and turn our circumstances around. We always had more power than the other creatures; we were just scared to wield it as we should, but my ancestors, at least those left, made a deal among themselves. We would destroy the humans and the supernatural hierarchy from within."
I coughed as I tried to talk. Using the back of my hand to wipe away the spit." Could you wait; a minute? I don't understand. I understand killing all the humans, but why would you want to kill all the supernatural creatures? You're all a part of the same culture."
She scoffed." No, we are most certainly not. When the humans all but tried to destroy us, we begged vampires, werewolves, angels, anyone to help us. Hide us. But no one came to our aid. They all left us to die and wither the storm. Everyone was out for themselves. And they had the power to protect us from becoming extinct in this world, but they didn't want us in it to begin with." Her eyes took on a mournful look. "I was a child when the humans came to my village and killed my parents, friends, and coven. My mother hid me in a small hole in her bedroom wall, and I begged her not to leave me. To stay with me. That I would protect her." She let out a humorless laugh. "Can you imagine a tiny six-year-old with barely any knowledge of magic trying to protect someone? She told me she would be back, but she never came back. I waited in that small hole for days before mustering the courage to come out. But when I did, I didn't make it three feet out of the house before I saw my parents and coven hanging from trees and discarded in the streets like trash. I ran and ran and ran until my legs gave out. I must have passed out from exhaustion because when I woke up, I was with someone. And she saved me and offered me a new outlook on life. It gave me another purpose. Revenge. Revenge on everyone that turned their backs on my coven and me. And, Helena, we are finally close to that revenge. There's just one piece of the puzzle that is missing. But, finally, we have it back." She sighed as she brushed her cool fingers across my cheek.
"What the fuck does this have to do with me? Why would you pretend to be my friend and murder Elijah?" I screamed as I fought the urge to break her fingers.
"We need your power—all of it. And the only way we can get it is by sucking it straight out of your soul when it's glowing at its brightest. A powerful Goddess touched your human soul, and that power is at its best when the moon is full of light. We were close all those years ago, but you met your mate, and Cal somehow got wind of you. And well, the rest, you know. But we didn't account for you and Rosa coming up with a spell that allowed your soul to be reincarnated. She unwittingly gave us a second chance." She laughed.
Rosa?
"So, Rosa didn't know what you were up to? Where is she? What happened to her?"
She pulled me up by my hair and dragged me to the stool, placing the chains around my wrists. The cold metal instantly made me shiver.
"Oh, she knew exactly what our goal was. What we worked so hard to achieve, which is why she was your guardian." I felt my heart drop. "But, she betrayed us, and we hunted her down like the traitorous bitch she was. Such a shame she won't be here to witness our glorious purpose being fulfilled." The smugness radiated off her in waves.
"What did you do to her, you wench?
A hard slap crossed my face, and I tried to jerk off my restraints. I tried hard to pull it forward, but it was impossible, like finding the right frequency on a radio. Oh, if looks could kill, this bitch would be dead. I felt the frustration build up in me and angry tears fell from my eyes. For all the power I had inside me, it wasn't doing me any good right now.
"Whatever you are trying to do, it won't work. I can feel the pressure of your power and your shimmering a little. But it is pointless, dear one. We placed a spell on you so that draining you would be unchallenging. And you may think of us as monsters, but we didn't want you to suffer much. I promise you that you will die as peacefully as possible. You don't have long now before the ritual starts. I suggest making peace with this so your soul won't be damaged when it passes on to the afterlife." She calmly spoke.
"This is fucking insane. You're insane!" I yelled. "How do you even plan on getting this power out of me?" As crazy as this was, I still wanted to know exactly how I would die.
"Quite simple. The moon will be full and bright, high in the sky tonight, and that is when your power is most readily available. It's when your connection with the moon goddess is more evident. We have been preparing a spell since we first realized what you were. We will take you to our sacred temple and call forth our ancestors. Once we have their conjoined power, we will suck out the goddess's essence and divide it among our remaining coven members. We will rip it from your chest and eat it when your heart stops beating."
Wow, that's harsh.
Maybe, I will be with Elijah.
I lowered my head in response to her confession. Was I ready to die? Can I give up? What about my friends and my mom? Would it be best for me and everyone else if I just became a memory? A moment just lost in time. There is no one to save me. And I can't even help myself. Even the brightest star fades out over time. Maybe, the sun is setting in my time, and there is no new moon on the horizon.
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