Ashes of Revenge

“Richard! Colt!” Raven screamed as she ran. “RICHARD! COLT! HELP!!”

She ran faster.

Her breath had left her body. Her legs were about to give out. A side-stitch felt like a knife in her lungs. Her entire body was in pain.

Despite everything, she ran.

An obsidian void surrounded her. The only other living thing was an orange and red moving glow behind her: fire.

Raven slid to a stop when the fire suddenly came out of the ground in front of her, lunging far over her head and blocking any means of escape. It descended on her. Right as the flame attached to her body and pain engulfed her, the floor beneath her gave way.

Water encased her. Raven looked up and tried to find a way to escape, but a clear floor was over it. Her fists and feet collided with the surface, but it didn’t so much as budge. A sharp pain shot through her chest, freezing her instantly. A sword was coming through the clear ceiling and impaling her.

The last of her air escaped her mouth, and she floated down - blood circling her body. Her body descended onto another clear surface in the water, stopping her.

The water drained, and Raven remained motionless. Suddenly, she coughed up water and sat up in the black void. The hole in her chest was gone.

A crackling noise made her slowly turn around. Her eyes widened when she saw fire feet away from her.

She stood up and began to run as fast as possible.

“Richard! Colt!” Raven screamed as she ran. “RICHARD! COLT! HELP!!”

A dark figure appeared in front of Raven. Before she could stop herself, she collided with the person. Cold hands grabbed her and kept her from moving.

Raven’s eyes fell upon the person and saw that it was none other than Death - a wide grin etched onto his face as he looked at her horrified one.

“Hello, my dear.” Raven just stared at him as she breathed heavily. “Not happy to see me?” He shoved her away, and her back slammed into the ground, which was now a few inches of water.

Raven quickly scrambled to her feet and looked everywhere, trying to find the fire.

“Don’t worry. The fire is gone.” Raven looked at him, and he smiled. “You’re dead.”

All breath left her body.

Death took a step closer. “Don’t you remember getting stabbed?”

Raven felt a subtle, soft pain appear in her chest. Slowly, the pain increased until she felt the need to place her hand over the area. When she did, it landed in something wet. Pulling her hand away, she looked at it and saw blood. She looked down and was horrified to find a hole in her chest. Her hand latched onto the wounds as the pain continued to increase.

“You were stabbed,” Death said, “by your dad.” He smiled as he looked at Raven; her body was going into shock.

The wound continued to grow. A breath of pain left Raven, and she looked up at Death. Though she didn’t say anything to him, he could tell she was asking him to make it stop.

“The rocks will be gone. Let’s go,” he said as he walked over to her.

Death placed his hand on her head, and her body went limp. She fell into the water, but instead of hitting the ground under it, she became fully immersed.

Opening her eyes, all Raven saw was darkness, and all she could feel was pain and water. On pure instinct alone, she began to swim up even though her body was numb, and the pain in her chest was agonizing.

Her lungs began to hurt from the lack of airflow, and after a few more seconds, she was forced to breathe in. Water filled her lungs, and she quickly breathed out but naturally back in.

Light began to shine through the surface of the water.

Raven’s fingers clawed at the water, and her feet kicked against it. Breathing out again, she watched as blood came out of her nose and mouth and surrounded her, adding to the blood coming out of her chest. Just when she felt like she would pass out, she finally broke the surface.

She coughed up a fine mixture of blood and water, and she almost sunk again due to how weak her body was. Managing to swim again, she finally made it to a place where she could stand, a type of ledge. Her boots slipped against the rock, and she stumbled back to land. Once her feet sunk into the mud, she crumbled onto her knees and breathed in as much air as she could.

Her muddy hands clasped onto her chest as she looked down at the hole over her heart. It looked as if fishes had taken a few bites out of her corpse and somehow a seed had begun to sprout, it’s small roots embedded themselves into her flesh. She clawed at it in horror, successfully ripping the plant from her flesh.

When the pain became too much for Raven, she fell to her hands.

Boots came into her view, and she knew they were Deaths.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, my dear,” he said with a smile.

Raven’s breathing increased, and her body shook and trembled. Memories of being stabbed forced their way into her brain, and everything became clear.

Too clear.

Too real.

Too painful.

Too much.

Raven screamed, ripping her throat apart and making the unnatural sound resonate around the secluded area.

Death’s cold hands grabbed her face and tilted it up. He was kneeling in front of her and, of course, that smile was there. “Told you it wouldn’t be permanent.”

Raven glanced up at him as rasping gasps of air managed to make it to her lungs.

“You’ve been dead for a week and three days.” Death knew the answers to the question that Raven currently couldn’t ask. “Fernando was ordered to bury you in the river, ordered by your dad, thanks to me. Now-” he lightly slapped her pale face, but it sent her nerves into overdrive. “-let’s go. I don’t know how much longer Colt can last. I may have gotten too carried away with him.”

Raven suddenly found enough strength to make it to her feet. Without thought, she swung at Death.

He grabbed her hand, and before she could react, his knee slammed into her stomach. There was so much force behind the blow that blood and the black liquid shot up her throat and past her lips. She curled up in the fetal position on the ground. Death nudged her onto her back with his foot and placed his boot on her throat, pressing down.

Raven gasped for air as her hands clawed at him. Her feet kicked against the mud and splashed in the water.

His eyes flashed to a pure black, and the pressure increased. She could feel her windpipe bending and caving in.

“Message made clear?” he asked. Raven frantically nodded.

After a few seconds of watching Raven gasp and squirm beneath him, he stepped off of her.

Raven’s hands shot to her throat, and she gasped for air, feeling the blood and black liquid go down again. She was too weak to stand, let alone fight a being such as Death.

“Let’s go, my dear.” He flicked his wrist, pulling Raven to her feet.

Raven’s head slumped to her chest and her shoulders raised as if holding her up. Her legs wobbled, her knees bent inward, and her arms hung limply beside her.

Death began to walk, and Raven followed, her body moving even though she hadn’t told it to. Almost every step she took, her ankles would roll, or her feet would trip or stumble over anything, but her swaying body never fell.

Raven’s chest had thankfully healed - as well as her recently burned hand - but her body was still feeling the effects. However, that didn’t matter anymore. Death was in control.

***

“We are close, my dear,” Death said. “When we arrive, there is a special surprise I have for you.” He looked over at Raven and saw her stumble once more, walking on the side of her ankle before her shoulders unnaturally pulled her body up again. “Oh, I will also be taking control of your body more so than I am now. But don’t worry, I won’t hurt you.”

Death walked forward again, and Raven lumbered after him. Her weak and shaking body just wanted to sleep, but the thought of Colt kept her awake.

“We’re here,” Death said.

Raven looked up and saw Colt.

His hands were bound with rope, connected to a branch above with his toes being the only thing touching the ground. The red leather shirt had been removed, and his white shirt was now stained with spots of blood. His nose had both dried and new blood coated around it, his lips were busted, and a few bruises rested on his face. His head was hanging to the side, and his eyes were barely open. An arrow was floating directly in front of his throat, spinning ever so slowly.

Bram had his hands and feet bound, and he was gagged. An arrow was floating in front of his face as well.

The only person who wasn’t imprisoned was a man leaning against a tree. Raven immediately recognized him as the Telik she had fought in the Monstro village.

Raven careened into the view against her will.

Colt’s shaking head rose when he saw her, spit and blood falling onto his shoulder and chest. He thought he was hallucinating at first.

Raven was dead.

He had watched her die.

Even now, standing in front of him, she looked dead.

Raven’s skin was a sickly looking, almost transparent cloud grey. The area around her eyes was a mixture of blue and purple - like a dying flower -, and her actual eyes were bloodshot. Her shaking lips were a dark icy blue. The entirety of her body looked as if it might collapse with the lightest of touches or the faintest of winds.

“Raven?” Colt managed to whimper out. The arrow pressed against his throat, drawing blood. Colt shut his mouth and remained as still as possible, closing his eyes and breathing out, his hands shaking.

The Telik stepped forward, and the arrow dug deeper into the Shifter’s neck.

The men seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

Raven’s eyes looked around, and they landed on Death. He was smiling. She remembered what he had said about these people being skins; they were already dead.

“Remember how I said I would take over . . .” he trailed off as he held up his left hand.

A smokey black figure appeared in his palm, and the shape resembled Raven. Lines looked like they were tied around the figure’s wrists and ankles. Death held his right hand over the mass, and the wires connected to his fingers.

Raven hesitantly looked down and saw black lines around her wrists and ankles.

Death moved his fingers, making the puppet move and causing Raven to mimic it precisely.

Raven’s body sharply moved. An arrow flew into the tree behind her.

She didn’t like how that felt. She had no control over her body. All she could do was watch and feel what she was doing. Her jaw tried to open to yell at him to stop, but it was locked in place.

Raven’s hand shot up, and she was face to face with one of the men, a weapon raised and aimed for her head. Suddenly, fire shot out of her palm and encased the man. His scream ripped through the air as he fell to the ground, rolling and kicking.

Raven’s face couldn’t move, but if it could, it would resemble the one she had done all day - horror. Fire had come out of her hand, and she hadn’t gotten burned! No one -no species - had ever done that! It was impossible! Unheard of! Impossible!

Death spoke, but the voice flowed out of the mouth of the Telik, “Kill her.”

“Let the fun begin, my dear.”

The men ran at her, and Raven moved. Her body spun around with unexpected grace with her arms outstretched, fire shooting from her fingers and palms.

The men jumped back to avoid the flame.

Raven straightened out again, and one man attacked her. He swung his sword at her, and she ducked out of its way. She shot up, and her fist collided with his throat, forcing the air out of his body. As she stepped back, her other hand swung back, fire catching onto the man. She stepped back again and turned around, her arm extended, and despite not touching him, the man flew through the air before he collided with another man, catching him on fire.

More men charged at her, and she continued this beautiful style of fighting.

A knife slid out of her sleeve, and after multiple counters, she managed to slice one’s throat.

She rolled onto the ground and stood up, avoiding more weapons and managing to catch more people on fire and throw them through the air.

Spinning around, her dagger plunged and sliced into another man.

Her other hand grabbed onto a man’s shirt, and she lunged forward, forcing the blade through his stomach.

Raven’s eyes looked around at the dead men until they finally landed on a smiling Death. It was clear that he was more than enjoying himself, and Raven could feel that by the way he was moving her. Not a single move was wasted, and the movements were beyond calm and calculated, feeling almost gentle. It reminded her of dancing.

A dance of Death.

The Telik moved his fingers, and the arrow pierced Colt’s throat again. Colt, despite wanting to hold his breath, breathed out in short pants, causing the arrow to agitate the area more.

Raven’s eyes focused on Colt, knowing he was beginning to break down. She was only surprised that he had lasted this long without doing so. Her mouth twitched as she tried to force it open to tell him it was ok, but her jaw was wired shut still.

It’s ok, Colt, she thought, because that’s all she could do, I promise.

While Raven’s eyes were still focused on Colt, her arm outstretched to him, shooting fire towards the Shifter. Her eyes widened right as the fire reached him, but before she could see any more, her body shot forward, making everything become a blur.

Raven jumped into the air while simultaneously pulling her dagger back and plunging it towards the Telik’s head.

The Telik jumped to the side and swung his hand, sending Raven flying away from him. While in the air, she twisted and turned and managed to land on her feet. The dagger caught fire, and she threw it at the Telik. He outstretched his hand to stop it, but her power was too strong.

He jutted back, and his lifeless eyes looked down at his ribs, where a flaming dagger was protruding. Despite his flesh being seared, blood managed to escape. He fell forward, pushing the dagger deeper into him.

As soon as he died, Raven felt every ounce of strength leave her body, and she collapsed. She could feel the fire retracting into her, grabbing and pulling her strength with it. Death was no longer controlling her. Her head rolled back on the ground, trying to see if Colt was alive.

Colt was sprawled out on the ground, groaning in pain. The fire had only burned the rope and arrow and somehow not him.

His head rolled to the side, and his tear-filled eyes fell on Raven.

They both slowly and painfully reached out to each other with arms that were trembling so much it looked as if they would fall any second. However, when their hands latched on to each other’s wrists, they gained a bit more strength. Painfully pulling themselves, their bodies dragged across the ground and towards one another.

They clung onto one another’s shaking bodies for dear life. Raven dug her face into his bloodstained shirt, and Colt pushed his face into her hair. They were so happy to see one another that they almost broke down then and there.

Bram sank to his knees next to the two and gently held them against him. They clung to each other and remained there for a few seconds.

“Oi’m gonna muve yeh. Ok?” Bram asked.

Slowly they both nodded.

Bram lifted Raven’s limp body off the ground and held her close to him. Colt stayed on the ground, groaning and breathing in pain. His hands had been bound for so long that his arms were numb, and his legs were dead weight at this point.

Bram set Raven down gently against a tree, walked back to Colt, and picked him up, earning a grunt. Bram placed him next to Raven.

Raven looked around and realized one key person was missing. “Where’s Richard?!” She sat up and felt everything grow sore, tense, and painful, nearly earning a cry of pain.

“. . . . He was taken.”

“Alive?!” Raven felt life flowing through her body, but she knew deep down it was anger.

Colt’s mouth opened, and his lips shook. “I don’t know. . . .”

Raven began to stand but was quickly slammed against the tree. Though she couldn’t react to it, she felt the liquid fill her lungs.

“Let’s not be hasty, my dear,” Death said with a smile. It was so rare to see one of Raven’s only fears making itself known. Now that she was over her fear of the King and Eliza, only one seemed to remain, and Death was determined to make the most of it.

The liquid went down, and Raven was able to breathe again. Her body collapsed onto the ground.

Colt leaned his head back and closed his eyes, breathing in heavily as his hand fell on his side. “What happened to yeh?” he mumbled. He forced his head to rise from the tree and looked over Raven’s body. There was a mixture of blood, mud, and what looked to be grass on random parts of her, but some color was back on her skin.

Raven’s mouth opened and closed a few times. “I don’t know.” Her voice was a shaking whisper.

“Yeh were stabbed. How are yeh still alive?! An’ tha fire?!”

Raven’s chest began to hurt, and she remembered the sword forcing its way through her flesh. The pain was nothing but sharp, lasting agony. No matter how still she was, the sword found a way to cut deeper into her.

Raven looked up at Colt. “I . . . I don’t have an answer.”

Death pushed her head against the tree and rubbed his thumb over her cheekbone.

Images forced their way into Raven’s brain, and she remembered first waking up, causing fear to sink into her body. She remembered seeing her blood float around her as she tried to swim to the surface. The sight of the hole in her chest, and lastly, the fire. She had had to relive the most excruciating pain she had ever had to experience, and her skin itched at the memory.

A tear rolled down Raven’s face. “I don’t know.”

Colt could see how much the mention of being stabbed hurt her, and he didn’t want to cause her any more pain than she was already in. So, he decided not to ask any more questions.

Despite the pain, Colt wrapped his arm around Raven, pulling her towards him in an effort to soothe her and himself. He could tell just because of how out of character she was acting, even more so than recently, that whatever she had done to survive was affecting her. She rested her head on his shoulder and wrapped one arm around him.

Colt winced in pain, and immediately after, he felt her removing her arm. “I . . . I just need to hold yeh. Please. . . ,” he begged. It felt like Raven was the only thing keeping him from falling into his Kingdom. He had gone back there too many times during his capture.

Raven placed her arm back around a quivering Colt. “I have yeh,” she murmured against him. And yeh have me. She wondered if Death had held Colt captive outside to toy with him more.

Both tensed to the point of it being uncomfortable, but they needed this.

“We need to get Richard.” Her voice was even weaker than it had been just a minute ago.

“I know.” He breathed out deeply and painfully.

“When Bram comes back over here, we’ll discuss what to do.”

They both breathed out again, realizing that Richard may not even be alive. Raven’s body began to shake in pain. Colt’s body tensed, and he placed his hand on his ribs.

“What did they do to yeh?”

“Beat tha shite outa me.” He faintly laughed before he groaned. “They got tha jump on us an’ decided to single me out.”

Raven had no sarcastic or snarky remark after that, and Colt was too beaten to try and create conversation. Even the small talk they had managed to sustain had drained every ounce of energy.

All they could do was wait.

VP IS NOW PUBLISHED SO GO BUY AND REVIEW IT ON AMAZON AND GOODREADS!!!!