© 2015 by Nique Joaquin. All rights reserved.
Image is the design on the slab used for the "unlock" later. Please, note, that this is the "unlock" chapter and it will be bloody. So... [WARNING]
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Since waking up without Maddox has lately become a regular thing, I wasn't surprised when he left me with just a tray of food by my side and a little note telling me that he was in the conference room to finish off the plans for the attack. There was only this day left after all. We strike tomorrow.
Feeling too lazy to see him, I get up and strip out of my ripped white dress and pull on some white workout leggings and a grey sports bra. I work slowly into a few yoga positions. Funnily enough, as I'm doing my little handstands and crow positions, I don't feel calm. I feel strangely... exhilarated. Like I have more to look forward to despite the absence of any real plans for the day. I groan as I lean against the wall to perform a backbend and touch my toes. I hear the sounds of some long unmoved bones click and crack with the action. I hold my position and sigh in relief when the door opens, revealing Maddox wearing a pale blue button down with a pair of ripped jeans.
"Yoga?" Maddox asks as I stretch out of my position and back on balancing myself on my own two feet.
"Why not?" I ask as I walk over to the bed and pick at the strawberries on the tray, placing one into my mouth.
"Ari is coming. You'll be in pain for at least a few days, are you absolutely sure you want to go through with the unlock?" Maddox asks me and I sigh as he walks over and kneels in front of me.
"I'm sure I'll be fine. We were supposed to do it last night." I say reassuringly.
"We had other plans." Maddox says with a happy-seeming sigh, "You don't have to go through with it." He reaches for my cheek.
"I want to go through it, Maddox. This goes beyond the bond I've lost." I mutter and Maddox shakes his head.
"Then let's get this over with. Ari's waiting on us downstairs."
***
Wearing a plain black shift dress, I made my way downstairs to meet Ari. Maddox and I made our way to a room I had yet to see and I was surprised to see that it was an all-black room that contrasted greatly with the usual wooden theme of Maddox's cabin-styled pack house. There were windows at the side but the heavy looking velvet curtains got rid of any light that trespassed. The only real source of light available was a large spotlight at the center of the room. Below it was a rounded slab of pure white marble that reminded me of a few gruesome images in my head.
"What is that?" I asked and I watched Ari walked towards me, she was dressed in a plain white dress and she had a little black dagger in her hands.
"It's necessary. Mikhail told you it was similar to the etching process... the whole ritual thing, right?" Ari asks and I shrug.
"Something like that." I mutter, Maddox squeezes my hand softly and I sigh. "Let's... just get this over with."
Ari nods and she motions to the round slab of marble, I walk over to it and lie down at its center. I trail my fingers around it and feel the intricate carvings, like a giant rounded maze below me. Maddox stands to my right and squeezes my hand harder before moving aside. Ari appears at my side and sighs as she hovers a hand above my eyes. I look straight up and focus on a single light.
"Spread your hands to your sides. If you can touch the edge of the slab, then do so." Ari says and I nod as I do as she says.
"I will have to press the blade down on both your arms." Ari says and I smirk before nodding. "If anything becomes to painful, say it at once."
I feel a quick sharp pain on my right wrist followed by another on my left. I look at my left and find that Ari's other usual servant, Scar, is doing the same thing. He has an expressionless face as he draws blood from my arm. The blades aren't pulled out until a sufficient amount of blood drips from them and land on the slab, drawing lines of blood on my arms.
After the blood had been drawn, I stared up into the light and waited. The strong smell of moonflowers hit my nose and a cold sensation travels throughout my body.
"I'll start the unlock now... Look up, Elair. Nowhere else." Ari says and I nod as I stare at the orb of light above me.
Helari begins to chant something in a language I can't fathom and I watch as the light above turns into a blur. I feel a burning sensation run down through my arms and I resist the urge to look at them.
"Focus on the light, Elair." Ari's voice says and I bite my bottom lip as I force my arms to stay still.
I feel something bind them to the table and in one brief moment, something knocks my breath out of my lungs. I feel myself strain against the new binds on my hands and my chest is lifted off of the slab. My breath hitches in my throat and I feel a large surge of pain spread from my chest down to every nerve on my body. A warm fluid falls from my nose and I feel my breath come out in small pants.
My vision falls into nothing but white light.
***
"She must be absolutely perfect." A powerful voice says from behind me. I hear the familiar sound of Aunt Eleanor's heels clicking around the floors.
"Oh but she will be. So young and innocent... Her very first session will be wonderful." Her voice says.
"Aunt Eleanor... I'm scared..." I say in a quivering voice, I hear her chuckle softly. "I... I can't see anything!"
"You will be fine, Elair. Different, refined... absolutely perfect."
"I wanna go home!" I cry out.
"Don't be selfish, Elair. You will be part of something greater than Blood Moon..."
"She's been rejecting the change, Madame Eleanor."
"She's adapting. Give her time." Aunt Eleanor's voice says.
"Last time your daughter failed to adapt. What if she-"
"Failure does not exist in my family. Camille has always been too weak. Now, get out. My darling Elair will be the perfect offering for Faustus." My aunt says.
"It's been years, Eleanor. She's perfectly ready." Another voice says from behind me.
"Her final session is today... do not fail me, my darling." Eleanor says and I shrug.
"When have I ever?" I ask her, but I can't see a damned thing with the lights blaring in my face.
"Faustus, this is my niece, Elair." Eleanor says and I walk towards a figure whose back is turned towards me.
Faustus turns around and reveals a surprising appearance. He's young. He looks no older than 20 years old, but the glow in his eyes reveal a danger to him. He wore a plain white suit with brown leather shoes, and his platinum blonde hair was neatly combed. He offers his hand to me and I simply stare at it.
"Don't be afraid. I've overseen your training since you've arrived." He says, his voice cheerful and welcoming, I look at Eleanor and she nods her head as I walk over to him and take his hand.
"Marvelous work, Eleanor. How effective is she?" Faustus asks and I smirk.
"Very." I interject as I put my hands behind my back. The all black leather suit I was wearing squeaking with my movements.
"Well. I'd love to see you prove it." Faustus says as he walks over to me and tucks my loose hair behind my ear. He's my height, but his icy blue eyes are fierce and intimidating. "You will be ready soon. The squadron will be a fit place for you until I call."
"Yes, sir." I respond and he smirks.
"Faustus will be fine. After all, you have yet to know your true role in my organization, but we will meet again. Under better circumstances." Faustus says before my vision turns into a dark haze.
***
"She's burning up, Scar, slice the restraints. Mikhail, grab the stake. Maddox, I need you to hold her in place- this needs to happen, fast." Ari barks orders and I feel my bones clicking around.
A ripping sound echoes all around me and I hear the sound of whispers practically scream into my ears.
Perfect. Killer. Murderer. Broken. Lost. Cursed. Chosen.
The words are repeated over and over, and I feel a sharp pain strike down my back. The restraints on my hands are removed and I immediately bend over, but I still see nothing but white.
My vision clears slightly to reveal the stone slab and my legs covered in blood. The slab and its intricate lines are covered in my blood staining my body. I scream in agony as a sharp pain enters the back of my neck but instead of a scream, I hear a terrifying growl... it sounded nothing like a wolf... it was definitely not... normal.
I feel someone hold my shoulders and I immediately turn my head and snap my mouth in an attempt to bite whoever is holding me. My mouth catches nothing but air and I growl loudly.
"Mikhail, now!" Ari shouts and I feel a strong hit at the back of my neck.
I scream and hear the sounds of the whispers grow louder and louder. Something pierced through my neck and I feel a cold cooling feeling spread down my spine. The sensation is welcomed and my body relaxes. My arms and legs feel soaked in a warm liquid that I know isn't something I want to open my eyes too.
But I hear the muffled sound of Maddox's voice and when I blink my eyes, I find that he's right in front of me, holding my face in his hands.
"Don't look anywhere other than my eyes." Maddox tells me and I suddenly feel faint.
"Aunt Eleanor..." I hear myself say in a hoarse voice. "She said a name..." I say.
"What name?" Ari asks and I turn my head towards her. Ari's hands are covered in blood and her eyes are glowing with a striking blue and yellow hue.
"...F-Faustus." I say, recalling.
"Helari." Scar says, his voice a hell of a lot lower than I thought it was.
My shock momentarily distracts me from the bone shattering pain I feel in my body and I watch as Scar loosens his tie. I also notice Mikhail now and the smirk on his face.
"My oh my... So the rat has returned." Mikhail says, amused and Scar grunts.
"We will discuss him later. Right now, I need you both cleaned up and for you two to clean this mess. Maddox, wrap Elair with this," I feel a cloth wrap around my body, "Take Elair, and have her go up to rest. I'll be with her in a moment. The stake I've embedded into her neck will regulate her and her body will eventually absorb it."
"Stake?" I ask, my voice surprising me with how weak it sounds.
"Later." Maddox says and I watch as my vision blurs and I feel my weight being gently lifted off of the slab.
"What... about... my... blood?" I say and Maddox snorts.
"I'll have someone clean it. Rest." Maddox says and everything else fades into a hazy memory.