Once Awakened: Chapter 13

Narcissa sat across from me at the blackened table in the middle of the strange room balancing her razor sharp knife on the very tip of her index finger. Since the poison on the blade of it was clear as glass I could not see it but it was the bitter scent of it that revealed its presence. 1

The silver blade turned swiftly on the tip of her finger; she was clearly controlling it with her mind, though it did not break her skin. The knife was turning faster and faster, so fast it was hurting my eyes, eyes that constantly saw every movement an object made separately and not this fast. She seemed oblivious to my presence as she flaunted her preternatural powers in a chilling show that I knew only she could produce. 2

Suddenly she seemed to come out of her little trance with the knife and it stopped turning on her finger. She then threw it up about twenty feet into the air and caught it at the tip of the blade in one quick, fluid motion before setting it down perfectly parallel to her left arm, and at the perfect location to quickly grab it.3

“This amount of poison would kill you, would it not, Marie?” She asked me though her eyes never met my face. 4

“You know it would, why do you ask?” I answered fearfully, I was sure my voice was at least an octave higher then normal.5

“To hear your answer.” She replied simply and then turned her eyes onto mine. I gasped and involuntarily pushed away from the table in fear, which resulted in my chair shooting back a good five feet. Her eyes were the exact same crimson shade as the satin dress that flowed across her flawless figure.6

“Do learn to control your self, Marie,” She said with mocking laughter clearly stated in her cold voice, “you’ll break the chair.”7

I wasn’t amused, I was terrified. I had seen her eyes flash red before but they always faded, just a flash. Not this time. This time her eyes seemed to each be relentless crimson flames. Her gaze mocked my actions with the chair yet, try as I might, I could not bring myself to come any closer to her.8

She looked at me with a pout on her perfect face, it would have been the look of angels and I would have done anything for her had her hawk-like features and flaming eyes not ruined it.9

“And I’m your little girl, why can’t you trust me?” She said in a falsely innocent voice, “After all, don’t I always make my intentions perfectly clear?”10

Somehow I fought down the fear that threatened to consume me at those last words, I don’t know if she meant them in the way I suspected, however. And, much to her annoyance, I still did not have enough air in my lungs to respond.11

“Marie, I had hoped you would speak. Things we be so much more, ahh, painless.” I didn’t like the way she said the last word, not as a threat as a fact. But this time, rather then fear her words even more, I was angry with her.12

“How dare you?! Immortal or not I am older then you, I am stronger then you. How dare you threaten me?” I was sure my outburst would not help me in a situation like this but I didn’t care, I rarely surrendered to my anger and I was long overdue.13

She laughed at me.14

“How dare I, Marie? I dare because I have the ability to kill you right now in this room without even making a sound. I could do it so quickly this knife would go straight through your heart and its poison coursing through your veins before you even had the chance to realize I’d moved from this chair. And no one could do anything about it, not even your Romulus.” Narcissa again said the words as if they were fact and, as much as I tried to deny it, I knew that they were. I was speechless in fear again.15

“At a loss for words again? Don’t worry, it’s written all over your face.” 16

“You’re evil” I hissed through gritted teeth struggling to remain calm, I couldn’t let her hurt me. Honestly, if I was not loved by Romulus, I wouldn’t care if she killed me; I wouldn’t even care if she drew it out and did it painfully. But I could not imagine the pain Romulus would be in if he lost me, nor did I want to imagine it, particularly if he lost me by her hand. I would do everything in my power to protect myself and therefore protect him from that.17

“I’ve heard that one before, Marie. That’s the one I usually hear before I rip out their throats and drink their blood. But I’m your daughter instead of your killer.” 18

I didn’t miss the emphasis she put on the word instead. She had to know what I would say next. I looked at the knife that sat beside her arm, it had the stench of death on it and I quickly looked away before I saw just how many hearts she had pierced with that knife. 19

It was then that it clicked. Why she had the knife when I only wanted to talk, why it was coated in a poison deadly to me and all others like me, why she emphasized the word instead, why she seemed so much more....deadly. 20

“You’re no daughter of mine, Narcissa. Not anymore.” I declared, and I knew I condemned myself to both her wrath and the fiery pits of hell when I did. 21

She was going to kill me now; she didn’t even have to say it because I already knew she would. She suddenly sat up a little straighter, a little more eager. She seemed to be enjoying herself in this room, where ever this room was. It seemed slightly familiar but I could not put my finger on it.22

She picked up her knife again and looked dead at me.23

“So how should I do this?” She questioned me, I didn’t expect her to ask, I expected her to throw her knife at my heart and walk away as the poison killed me.24

“Quickly” I snapped and I had to admire my nerve in the present situation.25

“Come on now Sithandra, where’s the fun in that?” She seemed thoroughly disappointed that I didn’t want her to kill me in her way, and I had a very shrewd idea of what that way could be.26

Suddenly Narcissa pushed the chair back and stood up knife in hand and vanished. I didn’t turn to look for her, I didn’t even flinch, and she had done this before. She was about to kill me in the only way she knew how to kill, where she vanished to was the least of my worries. 27

I didn’t even get to blink before I felt three things at once, none of them any better then the last. 28

First, I felt the knife pressed tightly against the left side of my throat with only her limited mercy keeping it from breaking my flesh.29

Second, I felt the inevitable and yet so shocking chill that resulted from the poison reacting with my vampiric skin. It was searching for a break or a cut so it could run through my veins and kill me. The poison was attracted to vampire blood and automatically moved toward it.30

Third, and worst of all, I felt her breath on the right side of my neck like a thousand needles of ice. And then I felt her fangs as they dug into my skin but did not break it. This was a hundred times worse then I had expected when I wanted to talk to her, I expected to live.31

I could not move to defend myself as she had me pinned down with her mind. But that wasn’t the only thing her dark mind was capable of. I felt like I had a fire burning in my mind and it was spreading through every part of me. Surely she knew I would be killed by this, the knife would be quite unnecessary. God! Even my mortal death seemed nice in comparison. At least Romulus was holding me; at least I knew I would come back. At least then I knew it would end.32

I was silent while she did this. My screams longed to be released and I wanted nothing more then to push neck into the knife and end it then but she wouldn’t let me. I knew Narcissa was waiting on me to scream. She would end it when only I gave in to her but I would not die having begged my killer for mercy. It was bad enough that I would die with my knees bent.33

I could not handle this much longer and she knew it. Narcissa would have me scream before I died, and she would laugh. I felt like my entire body was being caressed by the undying flames of hell. Half of me wanted her to end it then and the other half wanted to beg Romulus’s forgiveness for the pain he would be in when I was gone. 34

It was then that, almost by accident, a small cry broke free of my lips. I had not meant to and but I knew it was enough for her. She sank her teeth into my neck and slid the knife closer so that the poison would flow into the wound. I did not notice the pain this time. I could only hear one word, one word that repeated itself like a mantra in my mind, a word I clung to so desperately in my final moments.35

Romulus…36