When Ember flipped her eyes open, ignoring the throbbing that had answered in her head, she found herself in a cell, resting against a cold wall.
The last thing she recalled was questioning the officers why they had bite marks.
Were they one of them?
Goodness, was she bitten as well?
As Ember scrambled to find a bite on her neck, her gaze landed on a figure that sat by the corner, staring her dead in the eyes.
Ember almost fainted out of fright.
Who the hell was she?
She wasn't at the quarters - the quarters constructed their cells to be attached to the investigation room, and there was nothing of such in her surroundings.
This wasn't a cell.
Where was she, then? Where did those sick bastards take her to?
As Ember gazed around anxiously, her gaze landed on the girl again who still had her cold gaze pinned on her.
She looked like she was in her late teenage years. And, as much as she had the potential of a charismatic look due to her blonde, curly, long hair, her pale skin, cracked lips, dead, black eyes, and the dark circles underneath her eyes gave it away.
She rather looked homeless in the place of a charismatic look.
They must have starved their prisoners.
Wait, she wasn't in the quarters.
What if the men were traffickers?
Ember gazed around again, and it took her the pitch-black passage that narrowed before the cell for her to confirm that she wasn't in the quarters.
Goodness, was she going to be sold?
Ember instantly jerked up, moving towards the bars and disregarding the throbbing in her head that had protested against her moving around.
She grabbed the rusty bars, attempting to stick her head between them to find anybody in the dark passage to speak to.
Perhaps she could get the million answers she needed.
Was she a slave to be sold? And, how were the traffickers able to poise as officers and have her arrested?
No, something was not clocking.
She stared into the passage that stretched before her and saw nothing but thick darkness.
"Hello! Can anyone hear me?!"
There were other cells to her right and her left. And, from the corner of her eye, she could see that they were occupied.
How many people did this trick work on?
Also, they acted nonchalant to her scar like every other normal person who would either throw her glares every moment or comment about it.
"Somebody help me!"
"Shut up and let me sleep."
The lady with the pale skin in the cell with her barked at Ember.
Ember ignored her, proceeding with her call for help. She wasn't taking any chance, but, at least, she needed answers.
"Someb—"
"Shut up, bitch, or I'll make you!"
A voice from the thick dark passage barked.
Oh, they heard her!
"Is somebody there? Please, I need to know why I am here! Please! At least, tell me what purpose I have here!"
The dark passage remained silent.
"Please…"
Ember pleaded, feeling tears roll down her cheek. She couldn't take this anymore. No, she couldn't. She needed to see her family.
"Please, help!"
"I said let me sleep!!"
The pale-skinned girl barked and suddenly stretched her hand towards Ember.
It took Ember all the air leaving her lungs for her to realize her lips were sealed magically by the strange girl.
Ember found herself struggling to part her lips to draw in air and she started getting suffocating, clapsing her neck desperately.
Ember stared at the girl with a huge frown as she twisted her hand as though she was controlling what was happening to Ember.
Ember found it ridiculous so, she rather not believe the girl was behind Ember fighting for her life.
Abruptly, she revoked her hand and Ember was immediately freed, regaining the ability to part her lips to gather air back into her lungs.
Ember gasped desperately as she fell to the floor, watching the girl examining her hand with a proud smile.
"I was afraid I couldn't control it since I had used it to mistakenly kill a lady before. I'm glad it's working perfectly."
The girl muttered to herself.
Ember could only stare back, trying to convince herself that the girl hadn't just restricted airflow into her lungs by just twisting her hand.
"D-d-d-did. H-h-how—"
She swallowed. "What just happened?"
"Well dearest, you might be staring at a witch. I apologize for almost claiming your life. It was just a test to see if my magics were working perfectly fine."
Ember's lips parted in shock.
"Do you even know where you are, girl? The Dark Creek."
Ember frowned.
"The Dark what?"
"The Dark Creek."
The girl repeated.
"How were you apprehended?"
"I-I. I was accused of murder."
The girl nodded as if it was a regular thing on a normal day.
"You are not here as a prisoner, my dear." The girl suddenly got up, striding towards Ember. "You are here as a suspect of a supernatural being."
Ember's frown deepened.
"You see, Dark Creek was created several years back, about over 50 years ago, the first time the devil arrived. They created this place to keep people they suspect are, in fact, the devil, and they torture them until they get the reveal they want."
The girl placed her arm around Ember.
"So, expect to be tortured, my dear."
"How exactly do they carry out this torture?"
Ember inquired watching as the girl returned to her previous position.
"Simple. They lay you out in the sun."
"Why?"
"Well, according to specialists, this devil that feeds on blood is sensitive to the sun. Its skin burns to ashes the moment it gets in contact with the sun."
Ember breathed out a sigh of relief. At least, she could clear her name with that. If she stood in the sun and her skin didn't react to it, they would realize right away that she wasn't the devil they were looking for.
"What about you, then? Why are you still here? Didn't you prove your innocence?"
"I did. They know my hands are as clean as ever."
"But…?"
Ember inquired, hoping for her explanation to be extended.
"That's what makes it Dark Creek. No one that comes in can ever make it out alive. Not even an innocent human."
Ember blinked, confusion clouding her face.
"W-what do you mean?"
"If the sun method doesn't work, they would believe you consume something that would make you insensitive to the sun. So, they would opt for the second option."
"What second option?"
Ember asked, gulping down the bile that had assembled in her throat.
"They drain you of your blood to the last drop, hoping you change into the monster whilst they do that. They believe it to be a method of provoking the monster in you to come out. And, if you happen not to be the monster they expect to change, you would be drained till your last breath."
What?