Still Human
Chapter 2: Stolen Heartbeat
She was four when it happened. One quick meeting, one glance, one poem. She was on a hard wooden floor playing with dolls, dressing them, fixing their hair. She was surrounded by stuffed animals that smiled on her with bead eyes and button mouths. She hummed happily as she sat in her pink nightgown that had the word "Princess" written across it in glittering red letters. Her bed was made, the room smelled of baby powder, nail polish, and warmth. That was when the voice came. It was like a deep rumble of thunder that was trying to sound comforting.
"Her eyes were deathly white,
Her skin was deathly pale,
Her cheeks were higher than the highest mountains,
Her heart was made of coal,
Her breath was filled with ice,
Her candle had been snuffed."
She squirmed on the floor and finally dashed under the bed and hid there where she would hide more times in the future.
She flinched, feeling as though someone else were in the room with her. The water bottle had been moved down next to her, as though it were tempting her. Also, she saw people walking around and the shelves were stalked. No one seemed to see her. She stood up slowly and rubbed her eyes a little bit. She reached out to tap a woman on the shoulder but her hand went right through her as though she was smoke. She had to get out of this store.
Her feet seemed heavy as she trudged to the door and pulled then pushed with everything she had. Finally she began to beat on the glass and scream at it to open. She turned to the store, which was now empty, as it was when she had gone to sleep. She took a step forward and then tripped. When she looked under her feet she saw the water bottle rolling into the shadows. What seemed like a hand reached down and picked it up. She gasped and began to move away but then felt something around her shoulders as she was lifted. She looked around and saw a leather clad hand on her arm. She tried to squirm against it but a piercing pain ripped through her arm and she stopped. The lights flickered on and suddenly five men appeared. They looked almost like they were the same man. They all had black hair that swept into their faces elegantly. They all had black trench coats on. They all had white skin. They all had black eyes. They all had the same thoughtful glare. They were so much the same, but they had slightly different characteristics that made them individual.
One of them walked up to her, brushing a soft finger across her forehead before glancing behind her at the man holding her. "Let her go Dark." He took a step back as she fell, until this point not realizing that she had been lifted off the ground.
She jumped to her feet and looked around in horror. Dark was exactly that, a man with only shadows for facial features. He was strong, she could see this clearly, but he had no color in his eyes. Where light touched him she could see through him as though he weren't there. She turned to the other men, trying not to betray the horror on her face. "Who are you?"
He took a step towards her and pulled out the bottle of water that had been following her around. "I am Seth, king of the shadow world, a place you know well I believe." She took another step back and bumped into the semi real Dark. Without thinking, she lunged forward with her fist cocked but when it seemed it was about to strike, Seth disappeared and pinned her arms to her side while his free hand was clamped over her mouth. He began to hiss into her ear. "Now shut up and listen! Nothing will free you from this prison that you are in! Nothing but darkness." He took in a breath and shoved her foreword.
She turned to him suspisousely. Her black eyes glared at him. "What do you want me for?"
He took a step towards her and began to walk in a slow circle around her. As he went, the air was stained black. "Everytime a queen in our world dies, she must be replaced in order for the king to have full power. It sometimes takes years to find another queen. I felt your power while I was on search." He stopped walking and stared at her. "You're one of us, someone so tortured they are no longer human."
She stared at him and gasped, then grit her teeth together. "What are you talking about! I'm still human!"
He chuckled and walked to her, motioning to Dark who walked up behind her and gripped her arms. She tried to push away but couldn't move at all. Seth smiled and put a hand over her heartbeat, which was fast and strong. "Oh really?" She winced as his hand began to glow in neon purple light. The stuff seemed to rip through her and grip at her insides. She had never felt this much pain before, and finally she reared her head back and howled in pain. Seth grunted slightly, pressing harder and making her pain worse. She began to kick finally, but didn't hit anything. Seth backed away finally and she was dropped. She coughed a little bit, her eyes slowly opening. Her hands twitched a little bit and she pushed her arm under her. She felt her muscles storing energy like a spring as Seth walked up to her. When he was close enough she jumped up and lunged at him but he caught her around the waist and grabbed a handful of her hair. She screamed and put her hands on his wrist as if to make him let her go, but he held tight. He drug her to the window and when she stopped struggling he pushed her forward to it. "Take a look, take a good look human!"
She stared at the window, which had never shown her reflection before. Now her reflection stared back at her and she felt her insides quiver. Her hair was white and hung almost to the floor. Her eyes were light blue with no pupil. Her cheeks were high. Her lips were black. She wore a black dress with a neckline that plunged to her waist and clung to her. She touched the glass and let out a sob as she dropped to the ground. Seth walked up behind her and forced her to face him. He gripped her hand and put it over her heart, or where her heart used to be. Her eyes widened when she felt nothing. Seth stared at her with a slight smile. "Shadows don't need a heart, liver, stomach, or anything else except the ability to reproduce and lungs."
She began to breathe faster as she felt her teeth, which were longer and sharper than before. "I'm a vampire?"
Seth chuckled as he brushed some hair off her forehead. "Don't be silly darling. We are not vampires."
He stood up and she slowly got to her feet as well. She went to grip her collar as an old habit but then looked vulnerable when she touched nothing but her skin. She had never showed any of her skin because it was always bruised. Now it was perfect and white, but she felt the change was scary. She felt less human than ever before. "I want to go home."
He smiled at her. "You are home, Shadow."
Her eyes began to flame with anger as she took a step towards him. "That's my name! I'm not one of you! I'm human!"
He growled finally and lunged towards her, pinning her to the glass. "Really, prove it! You're coming with us!" She shook her head angrily and so he finally smiled. "Well, I suppose Ill have to take you by force." He withdrew the water bottle, which she had forgotten about and opened it. When he put it to her lips she turned her head away from him and began to breath faster, feeling like she was going to explode. A scream ripped from her mouth and sent a searing heat through her. When she opened her eyes she gasped. He had been thrown away from her and the bottle of water had been dumped on the floor. She dropped to the ground in shock and that's when she felt the small pain in her arm. She tried to move but couldn't. All she could do was watch hopelessly as Seth rolled her over and brushed her hair out of her face. "Don't be afraid Shadow," he said from what seemed to be miles away.