(Material Realm, A.D 1860 - Virginia)
(Character POV)
"Young sir", a middle-aged man walked into a large room with a tray in hand. "It is almost time for your departure."
He walked over to a small desk at the far left of the spacious bedroom and placed a cup of tea on it.
"Thank you, Alfred", I smiled faintly as I continued to stare down at the reflection in my mirror.
It was one of those other normal days. It was one of those… abnormal days? I didn't like school.
Why did I have to go in the first place?
I understood its importance. I needed the education to take control of my father's plantation one day.
But, deep down I didn't want that.
It simply didn't feel right.
"I shall take my leave and prepare your carriage", Alfred lowered his head and left the room.
I finished buttoning my formal school attire. You could simply imagine one of those rich-looking clothes noblemen would wear.
Honestly, I never felt like I belonged in these clothes.
They seemed to belong to some other group of people…
People we were supposed to consider humans.
I was confused.
Within a few minutes, I finished with breakfast and walked out of my room. Waiting for me on the other side were two girls. Two slave girls to be exact. They were twins and something about the somewhat blankness in their eyes gave me the chills whenever I saw them first thing in the morning.
They kept their heads low as one of them– The taller one with messy hair–carried my luggage. The three of us walked through the hallways in the large mansion and walked down a flight of stairs that lead to the first floor.
"You are particularly late today, Edward", a hoarse voice spoke up from the room on my left.
"Pardon me, father", I uttered. "It won't be the same next time."
There was a short sigh from the other side. It was hard to see him since the curtains only allowed a small portion of light through.
He sighed, "We'll discuss this later. You are already late as it is."
"Understood"
With that, we left the mansion and made our way to the carriage that waited for us at the main entrance.
Alfred helped me onto the carriage and the two other slaves climbed in with noticeable struggle. Sometimes a thought would come to mind;
Father wasn't the kind of person to allow any slave, no matter how trustworthy, to get as close to his relatives as these two slaves did. Maybe there was something particularly special about them?
As far as I knew, these two weren't the product of one of his 'wild runs' with the women slaves… Like I was.
My eyes wandered to the opening on the left side of the carriage as we began to move.
These girls
Rather than saying my father had something going on between him and them, it felt right to say that he never even realised their existence in the first place.
Now that just sounded absolutely ridiculous…
"Master…"
A smallish voice called out to me and instinctively, I turned my head to the source. The shorter twin, with neatly done braids stared at me with curiosity in her eyes.
"Zoraide? What is it?", I raised an eyebrow.
Normally, the only times they would speak is when we were in the carriage.
Zoraide turned away the moment I established eye contact. She was like this really; extremely shy.
"T- The stars… today", she muttered.
"What?", I moved closer.
And that was when the taller twin interrupted, "Tonight's sky will be barren."
"Zuleika", I turned to face her. "What do you mean by that?"
They always spoke like this. Sometimes I would spend hours on end trying to decipher what they were trying to tell me. Sometimes I'd understand and most other times, I'd be completely lost.
Zuleika looked outside
I did same
Several rows of plants passed by as we galloped along. In the fields were many slaves, working tirelessly in the mild morning heat. Men, Women, Children, they were all subjected to harsh treatment except a very select few.
And by select few, I meant a small portion of the children that were birthed as a result of my father's immoral acts. As for those children who were birthed because of the officers having their share of the fun, they weren't excluded from the work.
"The stars will leave this tainted land", Zuleika muttered and her eyes shifted in my direction. "...and so will we."
"Huh?", my eyes narrowed. "Are you being sold? Or are you-"
"She talks of the soul", Zoraide interjected with a fast utter. "Tonight, there shall be a harvest. A harvest of souls and the stars that fail to leave will be the stars that haven't fulfilled what they have been tasked on this land."
That was the first time Zoraide spoke that much.
There was an understanding of what they said. I felt I understood and I killed the urge to ask questions. The air in the carriage only kept growing tense.
Zoraide smiled at me and Zuleika kept a stone-cold expression on her face.
Who were they?
Time seemed to speed by as within a few minutes, we arrived at the school. The girls watched me from within the carriage as it left.
I couldn't concentrate in school that day…
It was nothing new. Afterall, I never really liked being there. The stigma of being a slave who particularly won the interest of their master was already enough to worry about, but that day felt sinister.
It felt like something watched me from every crevice or creak. It was uncomfortable and I only wanted to get home as soon as possible.
.
.
.
I locked myself up in my room right after school. Zoraide and Zuleika weren't in the carriage when it came to pick me up and that added to the terror. The way they spoke made me question if they were really around my age.
One wouldn't really expect 14-year-olds to talk like that, right?
Hidden away under my blankets, I closed my eyes and hoped that my dream would carry me away into a better place.
It happened.
I was gone in only a few moments after my wish. I couldn't particularly remember what I dreamt about, but it wasn't anything nightmarish at least.
Once I woke up, I took off the blanket and moved over to the windows.
"It's already night time", I muttered and then noticed something. "They said the stars would leave, but they're still there."
The sky was decorated in a brilliant shining display of stars and the full moon made it an even more incredible spectacle.
I sighed and closed my eyes, "I can't believe I let what they said get to me. Then again, I always seem to let their words get to me."
Just as my composure was getting calm, the sounds of rushing gallops echoed in the courtyard. I looked down and noticed many of the guards heading in the direction of the slave barracks with torches in their hands.
"What's going on?", I muttered and then made my way to the door.
*click*
"Huh?"
*click click*
"Why is it locked?", I tried to turn the knob a few times, but to no avail. "Tch, Alfred!"
There was no response from the other side no matter how loud I shouted or how many times I did. Something was very off. It felt like the entire mansion was empty.
It seemed there was only one way to leave
"The window…", I rushed back to the other side of the room and opened the windows.
I gulped. It was quite a long way down, but I had to follow the guards. Something just strongly prompted me to.
Carefully, I reached out into the pale night and moved my arm to the left. There was a pillar I could slide down from. Little by little, I managed to get my body out through the window and out hugging the white pillar.
My gip was solid until I felt I was ready to let loose.
"Okay, here goes…", I closed my eyes and let my body drift down the structure.
A warm sensation rippled on my hands and chest as I slid against the pillar. I moved faster until finally reaching the bottom, immediately getting away from the thing.
"Ouch", I squinted my eyes as a ringing pain erupted from my palms.
But that had to be the least of my worries! Now that I was outside, I had to rush to the slave barracks!
Without thinking too much, I made my way out through the open gates and rushed along the dirtied path. The sound of crickets chirping reverberated in the air as I ran through the growing foliage.
The night would've been barely visible if it were not for the moonlight.
"What's this?", I muttered to myself. "Why… Why does it feel like… there's no one in the entire plantation!?"
As I approached the barracks, my lungs began to fill up. I coughed and slowed to a stop.
Something was burning!
"It's from the barracks!", I stepped forward and pressed into the heat.
It was there that I felt the presence of people again. The area was filled with blood curdling screams and aggressive shouts.
"Wipe them all out!"
"Kill every single one of them!"
My heart sank for a moment as I beheld the horrid sight. The entire community of slaves was burning to the ground and every member– Women, Children, Men–were ruthlessly murdered by father's soldiers.
"What- Why-"
I wanted to say something, I felt like I had to say something…
"H- Help me! Please!"
A small girl held me by my clothes, tears rolling down her face. She was skinny and she desperately tried to cling to me.
"Please! Mama! Papa-"
*BANG!*
A loud gunshot split the air as a bullet shot through the girl's head with laser-sharp precision.
My eyes widened.
"Hey! HEY!", the soldier grabbed me by the arm. "What in god's name are you doing here!"
N- No
I… I had to get away..
I had to get away!
I broke free from the man's grasp and rushed towards the flames. Nothing really prompted me to think rationally at that point. I was sure I wanted to go in the opposite direction, but the feeling I had from the flames… that feeling to get closer…
It was one of the most powerful feelings of attraction I had ever felt.
Like a moth drawn to a flame, perhaps.
I kept running until I found myself at the heart of the barracks. It was there that I witnessed the sight of three familiar people.
Two girls stood at the sides of a man who donned royal attire.
"Huh?", I stopped.
The two girls turned around. Their dimly lit eyes bore deep into my soul and they were devoid of emotion. All the flames around seemed to be the least of their worries as they calmly stood and looked at me.
"The weary souls are leaving one after the other", Zuleika looked up. "And now, there are only three stars left…"
Zoraide also raised her head, "But the stars have gathered. It is only a matter of time."
"Only a matter of time?", I clutched my head. "I- I don't understand! What are you talking about!"
"HEY YOU!"
The soldiers emerged from within the flames with their rifles in hand.
"Edward", a calm voice called out.
I raised my head and got even more confused, "Father?"
The man who stood in between Zuleika and Zoraide happened to be my father. There was an indifferent look in his eyes when he turned around. His middle-aged features lit up in the light of the flames.
"It makes sense now", he muttered. "To think something as metaphysical as being bound by a trance could exist in the first place."
"What?", my brows furrowed. "What are you talking about?"
"This man was cursed the instant he laid your mother", Zuleika spoke. "And he has filled the role he needed to fill in order to be set free."
"Partially", Zoraide added. "We are the final pieces to the ritual."
"R- Ritual??", I coughed.
"SIR!", one of the soldiers raised his weapon.
My father simply lifted his right hand and signalled for them to stand back, "It seems I'm in control of my own body now."
He gave a faint smile. It was faint, but unsettling. Following that, he walked over to his soldiers.
"Edward", he began. "Perhaps this is a consequence of my foolish acts. I slept with your mother on a drunk night and she gave birth to you. Of course, If I am to be exact… I raped her."
I… wasn't surprised about that.
I knew I was the child bithed from my father's affair with a slave.
"I was so drunk, I couldn't notice the look in her eyes while she cursed me!", he laughed out loud. "Or no no, I didn't think it would work in any way. Curses and things like that are ridiculous. Let's understand this as me being drugged and having my memory altered to affect my actions, shall we?"
He moved over to the soldiers and grinned.
"Well, I did slowly get over the drugs and I could finally hear those deranged girls.", he shrugged. "Apparently, since those sisters of yours witnessed your mother getting raped, they got mixed up in this 'curse' nonsense as well."
My legs began to feel wobbly and my lungs were beginning to strangle me. I fell to my knees and clutched my head even harder.
Sisters??
Zuleika and Zoraide were my sisters??
"Our brother shares the same age as us", the two girls uttered eerily as they tilted their head in a disturbing sync. "Doesn't that bother you?"
I shook at the sound of their voices.
"Kill them"
*BANG BANG!*
Rounds of gunshots penetrated the sounds of the burning buildings and after that, the sound of two thuds lightly vibrated across the ground.
I muttered under my breath, "Z- Z- Zoraide…. Z- Zuleika."
The shots stopped and I could hear the sound of footsteps getting closer.
"As for this one…", my father's voice coldly rained down on me. "I'll personally end him for good."
My heart sank and my body wanted to move
But-
*BANG!*
The last thing I heard was a gunshot and after that, everything blurred into an eternal darkness.
All the horrible sounds and feeling of being drowned suddenly drifted away. It felt like I was left to drift in an endless void.
"What just happened?"
No one answered my question
And I didn't have a life to think back on…
I died again
Well, basically…