57
Alayna
Thursday 1st October, Year 828
“Tiv!” I screamed, thrashing my insignificant body weight against the Umbrith.
It ignored my feeble attempts. Tiv held his arm up, protecting his face, as the creature’s vice-like jaws clamped down on his arm. Tiv made no sound but his eyes bulged unnaturally in his head. Desperation clawed at my insides, fuelling a surge of adrenaline that sent me vaulting onto the creature's back. I emptied Xander’s handgun into its head, the thud of bullets muffled by the thick, stony hide.
The Umbrith’s body bucked wildly, muscles rippling beneath its grey frame in an effort to fling me away. Through mindless determination, my fingers dug into whatever holds they could find. Marco, drenched with a slick sheen of black blood, flew to Tiv’s side and hauled his brother to safety.
Bolting in the opposite direction to Tiv and Marco, I drew the monster away from them. Sprinting from the building into the main street, I barrelled into two of Tiv’s mates who were trying to escape. My hand latched onto a blade hanging from the blonde man's belt, even as they tripped away from my reckless path. Spinning around to face the Umbrith, I hurled myself at its feet and slid beneath it. Before it could pivot to crush me, I surged onto its back again, stabbing wildly at its throat until I had enough traction to start slicing. I did not stop until its head was detached from its body.
The bite mark on my stomach had opened yet again. Bent double and clutching my side, pain throbbed through with every inhale. I noted the blonde man and his little green-eyed girlfriend staring at me–expressions painted with horror–like I was a savage.
Tala and Kale. The ones I told Tiv I’d keep alive.
Fucking hells.
“Help,” Kale asked simply, his Lambentian accent heavy.
“What do you mean, help? Run! Or take your ass back in there and get Tiv out!” I shouted.
Tala matched my intensity with bewilderment; Kale wrapped an arm around her protectively.
"No Vakosian," she murmured.
I swore; I’d have had better luck battering my head off a wall.
“Do you have a map?” I barked at them.
Kale replied shortly in Lambentian.
I swore again and mimed a stupid action like I was reading a map, speaking slowly, “Map?”
He said the Lambentian words for ‘yes’, holding up what looked like a GPS.
“You think you’d learn the language of the country you're invading,” I muttered under my breath while snatching the device from his grasp to input my parent's address.
Sending them to my folks seemed like the worst good idea I'd ever had but it was the only place I could think to send them where they wouldn’t be killed. I could hardly communicate anything else with them and the only other safe house we had was destroyed. Kale started programming the GPS, gripping Tala's hand tightly. I told them to take their Lambentian uniform jackets off but again was met with bewilderment. When I stepped forward, so did Kale, putting himself between me and Tala. I rolled my eyes in exasperation and yanked down the zip of his uniform anyway, signalling for him to take it off. If their eyes didn't give them away on the trip to my parents, a giant gold cross of their black uniform would.
After letting me strip him of the coat, Tala copied him. They exchanged words in their native tongue, something soft I couldn't understand, before dashing off like shadows running from a sunrise.
One breath. I let myself have one deep breath. Then I ran.
As I plunged back into the building, I was greeted by the sound of gunfire and screaming. The cold, empty street had been a lovely little respite from the chaos. Scouring the room for Tiv, my gaze locked on him–shooting with his undamaged hand behind an overturned table at the far side of the room. His injured arm hugged his torso as he fired at an Umbrith going for Leesa.
Creatures swarmed every surface; we were all going to die if we didn’t run, even with all our rebels.
“Ben, we need to leave!” My voice pierced the din.
"Everyone out!" Ben commanded above the chaos. "Make for the hospital or base! Swipe any car you can and shake off the fuckers! Alex, on my go–blow this place sky-high."
My stomach rolled over; Tiv needed to get out.
Rebels surged toward the doorway in a blur. Alex led the charge, with Louise and faces I didn't recognise at his heels. Lucas dragged Leesa past me, her body limp with exhaustion until he hoisted her onto his shoulders and bolted. Ben flanked the back of the remaining rebels, ushering them forward towards the exit. As we started to escape, the Umbrith turned their attention to the only other people in the room: the four Lambentians. I tried to rush back to Tiv before I ran into Aaron.
“Not a chance. You’re not dying for him. He’s got his people,” he gritted through clenched teeth, steering me away with an arm cinched around me.
Aaron's grip could've been dust for all it restrained me; he was hanging by a thread. Maimed. His face had a deep cut slicing from his forehead to his jaw which continued onto his chest. His scarlet blood was intermingled with the Umbrith’s black. I couldn’t bring myself to leave him–a tug at my conscience or maybe just a shred of stubbornness to hold on to what we had.
In it for whatever, me and you.
I hauled his arm across my shoulders and together we stumbled toward the escape. As we retreated, I caught sight of some creatures slinking out the hole they’d created rather than following us.
“Where are they going?” I wheezed, heaving Aaron down the cracked street.
“Doesn’t matter! Just move,” Aaron gasped.
I half-dragged, half-carried Aaron as Lucas came racing around the corner in a sleek black armoured car. Stolen from the Lambentians. Louise and Ghost hopped out, snatching Aaron from me.
“Where the fuck have you been?” I snarled at Ghost as I forced Aaron into the car.
“Spying,” she muttered, climbing after Aaron.
The moment that car door clapped shut, I spun on my heel and made a beeline for the library. I heard footsteps thumping behind me but didn't bother checking who it was. Skidding to a halt at the library, Ben was leaving with the last rebels… and barring the doors with the Lambentians trapped inside.
“You promised!” I screamed, trying to pull uselessly at his arms.
He flung me to the floor and yanked out his phone. "Alex, thirty seconds."
The doors of the library began to shudder as the Lambentians shoved uselessly to escape. Ice pooled in my stomach as I stared disbelievingly at my big brother. It had never occurred to me he seriously intended to blow up the building with them still inside. He promised me as long as I was safe, he wouldn’t. He promised me Tiv.
But Ben Jameson was a liar.
I saw red. Throwing myself forward, I slammed my elbow up into Ben’s jaw hard enough to send him reeling. Tearing the chain from the door, they all but flew off their hinges as Marco tumbled onto me, knocking us both to the floor—an Umbrith missing him by a hair's breadth as it fled into the sunset. Some dark-haired guy yanked Marco up as he glared at me with so much loathing I almost laughed; course hating me was the priority right now. Both men stared at me for a split second before I felt electricity surging the hairs on my arms up.
“Run,” I hissed, spinning on the spot to face Louise and no doubt get electrocuted again.
I heard the thundering of Marco and his mate’s boots without a backward glance. Louise simply glared over my shoulder at them before her hatred turned on me.
“If they do anything other than leave, I’ll destroy them,” she promised.
“I believe you,” I muttered.
Tiv’s blonde bitch closely followed out of the building, pulling Tiv by his uninjured arm through the door. He was grey. Louise came up behind me as I took a step forward. She seized my arm, trying to tug me back into reality.
Tiv wrenched free from Blondie's claw and stumbled in my direction, his steps unsteady as he struggled to stay upright. Ben aimed his gun with precision, the barrel pointing directly at Tiv’s head. I barked a long line of profanities, trying to grab for the gun. But Ben's grip on my shoulder was like iron, bruising and painful as he shoved me back with force.
“If Tiv Hawes dies because of us, Harroworth will be burnt to the ground,” I hissed. “There’s no making them leave if you pull that trigger.”
Tiv's jaw clenched tightly, determination etched into every line of his face as Blondie continued to tug at him like she was trying to uproot a tree. A low rumble of Umbrith hissing filled the air, adding to the tension as Blondie's pulls became more frantic and urgent.
"Alayna, we gotta go," Louise said stoically.
But I couldn't tear my gaze away from Ben and the gun in his hand. "Ben," I growled, my voice laced with both rage and pleading. “You owe me this.”
Slowly, hesitantly, he lowered the gun from his grip, jaw taut.
Me and Tiv locked eyes for a split second before he said, “Go. I’ll be back. No more will come for you. Not because of us anyway. I promise.”
Ben wasn't about to let any more words fly. He grabbed me by the arm and hauled me off. I writhed against his vice-like grip as he tried to hoist me onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
Ben hadn’t expected the Lambentians to leave. He had placated me by letting me go in there, wanting Tiv to betray me. To see I’d been manipulated. But it wasn’t true. Tiv was exactly the person I thought he was. It didn’t matter to Ben. In his head, every last Lambentian in that library had to die, Tiv included. He'd told Alex to detonate the bomb in thirty seconds, thinking we’d be clear of the blast.
But we weren't.
The deafening roar of the explosion reverberated through the air, shaking the ground beneath us. Flames erupted, swallowing the building whole as plumes of smoke billowed and mushroomed into the evening sky. Ben curled around me as the force of the blast threw us across the street like ragdolls. Shock coursed through me like a live wire and everything felt upside down–my brain couldn't follow which way was sky or ground. Ringing filled my ears, so loud it was all-consuming but felt miles away too. My body crumpled beneath Ben's weight; grit and ash filled my mouth.
“Ben?” I choked out, struggling to push him off. No answer. Fear spiked through me like a thousand needle stabs. I hammered my fists against him, shouting for all I was worth, "Ben! Get your ass off me!"
My body flopped with relief as he groaned, rolling to the side. The relief lasted less than a second. A twisted piece of metal protruded from the bottom of his back like some grim flagpole, piercing through his body to stick out of his stomach. As the flames licked our surroundings and acrid smoke choked the scene, Louise fell down beside us, covered in blood and eyed Ben frantically. Blood pulsed too from his middle where he lay way too still–his face screwed up tight, breaths coming short and sharp. His face was ghostly pale. The colour of corpses.
Is this real?
My hands shook violently and the continuous ringing in my ears muffled the world into a distant hum. In the chaos, I expected Ben to take charge. But he didn’t. He couldn’t.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
I felt like I’d regressed–not exactly like a kid, but something small and fragile. A porcelain doll that had suddenly come to life only to realise how breakable it was. I huddled beside Ben, my breaths shallow whispers against the roar of the flames.
"Get... you and Louise... to safety," Ben managed between ragged breaths.
Another car skidded around the corner but couldn’t get close enough to us, barred by the wreckage of the library. Leesa threw herself out of the vehicle before it had stopped, her expression twisted with horror as she registered Ben's state. Alex pulled the car as close as he could. It took all four of us to haul Ben’s limp body across the debris, laying him in the back of the car. He was already unconscious by the time we made it there. I kept my fingers dug into his neck to make sure he still had a pulse.
“We’ll not all fit in the car,” I gasped. “Me and Louise will figure something out. Just get Ben help.”
Leesa looked at me with concern but without argument, helped shove Ben’s feet into the vehicle.
What if he died?
The stupid bastard had killed himself. My heart beat too fast as I took deep, gasping breaths. It took a few seconds to remember I still had unwanted spectators to my panic attack.
Pull it together, you useless bitch.
My gaze flickered over the charred remains, scanning it for signs of life. Further down the street, Tiv was manoeuvring Blondie over his shoulder with one arm. She looked dead. His face was showered red as blood pulsed from his head. Tiv eyes caught mine, concern etched on his face for a fleeting moment before it dropped, replaced by an icy contempt. I didn’t care. I rushed to him anyway, clambering over rubble as my body screamed in agonising protest. As I reached him he backed away.
“You knew that was going to happen,” he accused, more confused than angry.
I shook my head quickly, “No—Ben... He wasn't supposed to... I didn’t think he would."
His laugh was as bitter as the ash on my tongue. "Liar."
“Tiv…” Fuck I sounded so pathetic. He heard it too.
A silent sigh seemed to pass through him before his eyes slid from Blondie back to me as if he regretted his outburst but didn’t know how to correct it.
His face crumpled as he spoke, “Go to hospital. I need to get Amelia to safety and I’ll meet you there.”
My body relaxed infinitesimally.
Blondie groaned over his shoulder, “Tiv, can we go home?”
His attention snapped to her; I could see the fight drain out of him bit by bit the longer he looked at her.
“Yes Millie, we’ll go home,” he whispered.
“Millie? Am I dying?” she gasped.
The bone protruding at an odd angle from her arm wasn’t a good sign.
“No, you’ll be fine. Let’s go home,” he reassured.
And it was that second I realised he was lying to one of us.
"Just... please," I stuttered, heat rising inside me with every syllable let loose from the depression box–a fucking reservoir of unshed tears and fears for him that had never seen daylight. "Our hospital can help her–you know that! You can stay there... safe."
It wasn’t an appeal for Blondie’s life but for ours–what we were to each other and what we still could be if he'd just trust me.
He let out a sigh, heavy like he was letting go of a ton of bricks. “I cannot just wander into a hospital here. I need to get her on our ship home.”
“That isn’t your home,” I whispered.
His face might as well have been carved from stone. No flicker of feeling. Nothing. He was just another Lambentian. I looked at the perfect woman he would marry draped across him, inferiority crashing over me. Course he would choose her when push came to shove. She was just like him. In Lambent they’d have everything together. What did he have in Harroworth? Nothing but me. A scarred, clinically insane murderer who lived in a shack.
“I’ll come back,” he lied.
“I’ll see you soon then,” I lied back.
He nodded. He was a good liar, I’d give him that. He almost looked sincere.
My throat constricted as I walked away.
Away from everything.
Louise followed me closely, I clung to her not just to make sure she didn’t change her mind, but to stop me destroying Blondie—disgusting proof of my inadequacy. One last glance showed Tiv placing Blondie on her feet, steering her in the opposite direction from us.
“Bye Tiv,” slipped from my lips, like my last breath slipping away.
I moved one foot ahead of the other robotically as we made our way to the parking lot.
“Why didn’t you kill Tiv?” I said, tears I couldn’t control sliding down my grime-slicked face.
Louise was stiff as she replied, “I don’t ever want you to feel what I feel now.”
“Thanks,” I murmured.
My head was doing its best to freak out over Ben when not looping back to Tiv. It felt like this time, even though I was the one who left, it was Tiv who walked away for good. Just like last time, in no way did this make the sting more bearable.
My pace quickened with every thought of Ben. The idea he’d die without me there sent hurricane-force panic through my lungs.
“Ben will be okay,” Louise whispered.
“What if he’s not?” The words spilled out before I could catch them. “Without Ben–shit–this whole thing will fall apart. Lambent will bring their boot back down on our neck and life will go back to what it was. Probably worse.”
"Nah," Louise cut in, pulling me close while I held the tears at bay. "We got you and Charlotte to keep things together… Let’s just get to the hospital and see what’s going on. We need to move. There was no reason for the Umbrith to leave. We’re still in danger.”
We chose to leg it to the tree-covered parking lot behind what used to be the library, figuring we'd lift a Lambentian car. After a few minutes of creeping, eyes on the sky, the thick, green trees leading to the parking lot started to clear. I became desperate to see Ben and started running for a car. Louise halted before we got halfway and pulled me behind a small wall, her familiar senses hearing something I didn’t. We listened intently to the shouting I hadn’t immediately noticed over the hammering of my footsteps. Someone was shrieking not far away from me, I crept towards the shouting to hear it better. Louise grabbed at me and I shook her off. The voice got louder as I crouched behind a vehicle, getting closer to the centre of the car park. Squinting, I made out a tall figure in the distance. Concealed behind another black SUV, I listened hard to make out the conversation.
“Why in the bloody hells did they attack us?” a deep voice shouted.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting Tiv to tell us to shoot them, was I? It doesn't matter who orders the creatures about, they don’t appreciate being attacked. They have autonomy. They’ll fight back! I only just managed to order them away in time before they annihilated us,” Marco barked.
What?
“I’m surprised you have managed to even get this far, you stupid beasts. You killed four of them out of how many? Fifty? You even managed to get two of ours. Absolutely useless!” he continued to rage. “Tiv’s probably gotten himself blown up. Go and find him and kill anyone that isn’t Lambentian.”
I risked peeking from behind the car. I was horrified to see Marco and the greasy-haired man who tried to shoot Yalma less than an hour ago stood surrounded by four huge Umbrith. One of them unfurled its wings, spreading them widely before shooting itself into the trees above. Quickly, I ducked down again. I didn’t have Tiv or Yalma to protect me this time but hopefully, a human lightning cloud would be enough. The second I concealed myself behind the car again the shouting stopped.
“What is the matter?” the other man with Marco asked.
A strange hissing sound followed and only stopped when Marco spoke again, he was so close I stopped breathing.
“There is someone here. They can smell it,” Marco said warily.
He didn’t speak for a minute or so, neither did the person he was with but the hissing continued, getting steadily fainter. Louise stared at me with wide eyes. We couldn’t retreat without being caught.
“Weapons?” I mouthed.
She held one finger up and made a stabbing motion. We had one knife between the two of us. Our only hope was for Louise to fry them to a crisp.
“Blood–food…” the hissing voice rasped like a death rattle.
I glanced back at Louise with wide eyes; we were both soaked red and probably smelled fucking delicious to the monsters.
“Go and get it then,” Marco dismissed, nonchalantly.
It couldn’t be.
Before my thoughts could wrap around the unreal horror of Marco’s commands, an Umbrith's clawed hand clamped onto my shoulder, slamming me against the car. Louise reacted with vicious swiftness, plunging her electrified blade into its neck. It did nothing but shriek and spit as another set of Umbrith's talons seized her from behind, hoisting her up by the throat. My screams were cut off almost instantly as we were carried back to Marco. Tossed to the ground like a discarded plaything, I landed hard on my knees in front of him at the same time the Umbrith dragging Louise lit up like a fucking firework. She clawed herself free and the creature’s screeches split through the air, spitting at it as she aimed another bolt at Marco, coming so close to hitting her mark, it singed his hair. She screamed in agony as the ugly guy shot her through the shoulder before her arm shot up in his direction. Nothing happened. No lightning fizzled at her fingertips and her eyes shot from the palm of her hand to the shooter in abhorrent disbelief.
He grinned broadly, hatred coating her face, “Rithum soaked bullets. We weren’t making the same mistake we did yesterday.”
Fuck.
With Louise powerless, another Umbrith lunged at her. She dived but not quick enough as its razor-sharp talons wrapped around her throat and cleaved her head straight from her body. A shocked gasp tore from my throat as Louise's head rolled on the ground. Her name might have escaped from my mouth before a raw, guttural scream. I scrambled back in horror, but another Umbrith pinned me down, forcing me to look into her glassy blue eyes still open and searching for nothing. I swear as her lifeless lips moved they mouthed the word ‘Riley’.
Seeing Louise's severed head on the ground destroyed me completely. I was wrecked, shattered into a million pieces that would never go back together. Her dead lips mouthing Riley's name made me want to scream and never stop. I shook uncontrollably, collapsing in on myself, filled with rage and the horrible knowledge that there was nothing I could do. But stronger than that, in the middle the eruption of shock and grief, a deep, oozing hatred for Marco took over.
He towered above me, a wide grin plastered on his face that didn’t touch his black eyes, wild and filled with revulsion. He looked deranged. I lay frozen as his fists clenched, ready to strike. I just sneered back desperately picturing all the ways Ben would pull him limb from limb… if he survived. Marco would pay for what he had done to Louise. For what he was about to do to me. I wondered if Tiv would punish his brother on my behalf.
He won’t, my mind admonished.
No. Marco would say I tripped and fell or something else completely unbelievable and Tiv would just trust him. He would never know the truth. The fact made me sad and stupid.
“Well, kill me then,” I said sarcastically.
Marco's smile faltered, a crack in his front. He seemed torn between anger and uncertainty—maybe?
Yeah, right. Don’t get your hopes up, idiot.
"Are you deaf?" My bark cut through the tense silence. "Get it over with!"
“She has a gob on her,” the other guy jeered.
“You’ll never know. In fact, I’d be surprised if you ever got a woman's mouth near you,” I laughed at the ugly man.
He cocked the hammer on his gun. I spat at his feet.
"Jonas," Marco interrupted before things ramped up further, voice steady but tinged with an emotion I couldn't place. “Don’t kill her yet.”
A bitter laugh bubbled up from my chest. "What’s wrong? Afraid Tiv will hear how you treated one of his little charity cases? I was this close to convincing him to get me out of this shithole.”
That did it. Marco's fist connected with my cheek and a flash of pain followed as teeth shifted within my gums. Blood mixed with spit pooled in my mouth, and with all the venom I could muster, I spat it across Marco’s face—his smile extinguished in an instant.
“You know what’s funny?” I grinned through bloodied teeth, taunting him more. “We weren’t aiming for Mayrina—that day—that bomb was meant for your dad.”
Marco stiffened; a familiar emotion flickering across his features—grief. But I didn’t feel bad. Fuck him.
“I kinda liked her,” I continued with feigned nostalgia before flicking my eyes up to meet his. “It’s your dad who won’t be so lucky next time.”
I didn’t give a shit anymore. I was done with the Hawes family, just relieved it wasn't Tiv who’d kill me in the end. I wondered how different life would have been if I hadn’t gone on that date with Marco or ever met Tiv. But it didn't matter; the highs of Tiv were worth the lows. Even now.
“You should have left us alone, rat,” Marco sneered before him and Jonas turned their backs on me.
Pain lanced through my arm as one Umbrith tore into my flesh; its counterpart sank teeth into my side, practically the same place as the last time, and a third smashed my head into the solid ground. The world span violently and I weirdly wondered if my brain was outside of my head. I lay there hoping death would come quick. It might have done if I hadn’t spoken my last sentence.
The angry words came pouring out before I had a chance to process them, “Only evil can speak to these creatures. That’s why you can. I bet your Dad can too. But not Tiv. He is good and he will never be one of you. That’s why he gets my love, forever, and you get my hate. You’ll die a lonely, bitter little man and join your mum. Hopefully soon. She’ll no doubt hate the disgusting, cowardly asshole you grew into…”
"Stop!" His voice cracked like a whip through the air, halting the creatures mid-assault.
Crushed against the cold ground, I felt my blood pool beneath me. Marco made his way back to me with almost as much feral grace as the Umbrith. Looming over me for a second, he brought his boot smashing into my face. Tears welled and spilt as pain surged from my shattered nose. When I tried to wriggle away, he pressed his foot onto my chest until my breathing became jagged.
“Do not touch her again, let her bleed out. If anyone comes near her then kill them,” Marco ordered.
“You are beyond evil,” I choked out.
“And you are going to die slowly. It’s no less than you deserve for destroying my family,” he growled, walking away again with Jonas.
Only hissing filled the silence. The creatures did exactly what they were told. I crawled a few yards before all strength left me and I collapsed in a heap. Instead of stopping me, the Umbrith just followed me. They would not hurt me now; they would watch me die. I waited so I knew Marco couldn’t rush back to silence me, before doing the only thing that could have possibly saved me, even if there was only one chance in a million.
“Tiv!” I screamed as loud and as long as I could manage before the world faded around me.
The black wasn’t as peaceful as I thought it would be. It seared through my body, causing sharp pains to radiate from my chest.
I hate the dark.
In desperation, I imagined Tiv’s arms around me until the pain began to fade. The black began to colour. I was lying in a snow-coated field. It wasn’t cold; Tiv’s warmth held it off. The sky above us looked like something out of a movie, full of stars twinkling and shining. But as much as I wanted to believe it was all real, I knew deep down that it was just my mind playing tricks on me. A field of dreams. I knew as the fantasy started to fade, that it would be my last thought.
It was strange. After years of wanting to die, I was sad when I finally did.