Fire Moon by Miss CrazyPlantLady (phonics reading books .TXT) 📖

I watched shadows dance outside the small window and it was too soon for the mash, I could hear voices arguing outside and then the door creaked open. It was Alexei and he was dragging Lolita behind him. The light that flooded in stung my eyes and I had squint to see them.

I didn't move. I could only see the deep purple bruising that wrapped itself around Alexei's neck. His eyes were dull and tired. No doubt he had more injuries than what I could see.

He just stared at me. Eyes wide with shock and when he reached my side, he stood with his hands away from me, afraid to break me if he touched me, "How long?" I almost cried at the sound of his voice, it was raw and scratchy like it hurt to speak, "How long have you been like this?"

I blinked away the tears welled in my eyes, "I don't know, since Urith left?" my own voice coarse from not speaking.

Lolita stepped forward and reached for my fingers first and I kept looking at Alexei, I rose my brows with concern when he finally looked back at me, "Are you okay?" I croaked.

He shook his head with a smile, "Healed."

Lolita's healing didn't leave a mark like Miles' did. It was like she took an eraser to my skin, the bruising left my skin like stain-remover on clothes and I watched her revive me.

"You can get up now" her voice was hoarse but she said no more and left us.

I didn't dare move. I was afraid of completely collapsing into a piles of bones in my days old vomit. My body seemed to have forgotten how to move.

Alexei smirked, reading this all on my face alone, he stepped forward and held my arms, "Come on, I think you're stronger than a little fear."

I slowly let him help me get out of my death bed and my knees groaned at the sudden weight but I balanced, surprising myself by not falling, "Are the children—" I started.

Relief washed over me as he shook his head, "They're alive still, he took enough of your blood it seems" his scarred arm reached forward and a water bottle sat in his hands.

I took without a second thought and I inhaled the sweet water, "Thank you" I gasped.

"Don't thank me yet" his voice croaked, "Kier's called a meeting and he wants you there."

"Why?" I asked, face scrunched with suspicion.

He shrugged, "He didn't tell me and I didn't dare ask."

We stepped out of the cell and there was an Eta waiting for us, "Kier asked for her to be blindfolded."

I let the Eta cover my eyes with what was a thick strip of cloth, no light bled through and I almost jerked in surprise when Alexei grabbed my arm, "It's alright, I got you."

"So, do you know what this meeting is about?" Alexei casually asked the Eta.

The Eta stuttered, "Oh, um yeah" I could heard his hesitation, "Kier is going to take the rest of the Changeling's blood."

I almost stopped walking but Alexei continued to drag me along and a low chuckle left his chest, it was a polite and fake laugh, "In front of the whole pack?"

The Eta didn't respond but I heard him knock on a door, the creak of the door suggested that they opened it but only a small amount, "I have the Changeling" the Eta announced.

I could feel my blood racing, my heart rumbling in my chest and I felt like I was going to be sick. This is my end. I was going to die in front of Kier entire pack. Alexei couldn't save me. August couldn't save me.

Alexei's finger softly move my hair behind my ear and I felt his mouth brush against it, "Breathe, I will handle Kier."

"He's going to kill me" I whispered back, the lowest I could get my voice to go. Hoping the Eta wouldn't hear me, "This is my execution, not a meeting."

"He can try" his breath was warming my ear, "Trust me, sweet Eden."

His warmth vanished and he pulled me forward. The room was filled with mutterings and growls the second I walked in. I could fell their eyes on me. They wanted me die and the air was thick of their thoughts, they didn't care how I died but they just wanted it fast. I kept my chin up as I felt Alexei weave us through the crowd.

It wasn't until I kneeled on the cold ground that they removed my blindfold. I squinted at the sudden light and eyed Kier. He sat on his throne of bones, the wolves around me growling and I smirked, "Nice to you see, Kier" Alexei was kneeling beside me and turned his head to glare at me, "It's been too long."

Kier didn't even bother to look down at me as he stood, "Pack, tonight I will drain this Changeling dry" he started, "I will become the most powerful Blaze-Hound this country has seen."

Our eyes finally met and I bowed my head mockingly. He growled at that, "And then we will feast on her body!"

The crowd roared with cheers and I felt my chest hollow out. Fear coating my throat. Feast on my body. Kier was not only going to kill me but eat my body.

Kier met my eyes again and a wicked smile stretched upon his face, his hand rose and he held a piece of paper, "Do you know what this is?" he laughed to himself, "It's a Burn Notice, the very one I sent your inferior pack and you were stupid enough to fall for it. Cameron never existed, he was merely a diversion."

I stopped breathing. Of course it wasn't real. How could be that stupid? A diversion. We fell for it hard and fast. We fell right into Kier's hands.

"Kier?" Alexei spoke loudly over the cheers, "I have an idea."

Kier looked unimpressed but gestured for him to rise, "Better be good."

Alexei shot me a quick glance and stood, "We could build an army of Blaze-Hounds, we could collect her blood and feed it to the pack. If we keep her alive, we could harvest a larger amount of blood and keep feeding on it," His voice was booming through the room and every set of eyes were watching him, "we would be the most powerful pack this world has seen."

The pack roared louder with that and Kier's brows rose in interest, "Maybe, you're not so useless after all" he gestured for the Zetas to start extracting blood.

"Wait!" Alexei started, "We took too much last time, we need to wait."

Kier did not like that. He's teeth bared in a growl, "I do not take orders for you, Velasquez" he returned to his throne, "How long do we wait?"

If Alexei was surprised at Kier's cooperation, he didn't show it, "At least another three days."

Kier thought it over for what seemed like minutes, "So be it" he finally said and gestured with his head, "Return her and collect her when the three days are up."

Alexei grabbed my arm and pulled me up as Kier shouted again at his pack, "We're going to be undefeated and unstoppable!"

The cheers muffled once they shut the doors after we exited and I glared into those emerald eyes, "You've doomed me!"

He looked wild, "I had no choice!" he was rushing down the hall, dragging me along, "I needed to come up with a stupid reason for him not to kill you right then and there, would you had preferred that?"

I refused to answer and he placed the cloth back over my eyes and he led me back to my cell. I shouldn't be so hard on him but I think I would prefer being killed instantly than over a few months. My death hasn't been prevented, just merely delayed.

He was watching me with a strange expression when I returned to my bed, "I'm sorry Eden, but I couldn't think of another way."

My eyes followed him as he left and I fell asleep quickly. The nightmares didn't visit me. They haven't been in a while and I was surprised. My own life being more of a nightmare.

It was the sound of metal scraping on metal that woke me. I wasn't in my cell. Cold stone laid beneath me. The room was pitch black. I reached up to touch my face and no cloth covered my eyes.

It was like trying to see through closed eyes, as if the sun was swallowed whole. Thickest void of darkness coated the air. I couldn't see or hear, I could smell rotting flesh and blood. I felt groggy and weak.

Then I heard it, "Eden!"

The hairs on the back of my neck stood, "Alice!" my desperation clear in my voice as it was in hers. A sob stuck to the back of my throat.

She was here. She was here. She was here.

I begged my eyes to see through the darkness. Rising slowly to my feet and squinting through the dark fog.

"Oh dear Changeling" my blood thinned at the sound of Kier's voice, "Isn't it a shame what a beautiful face your sister had?"

The next second was filled with Alice's pain-filled screams. They echoed around me, drowning my ears in the noise and I took a step forward into the void as another scream filled the air.

"You corrupted my loyal Null-Hound and now you will pay!" Kier roared. The sound vibrated through my bones.

My skin prickled with heat, my flames doused my hands but it wasn't enough light to see, "Alice!" I called again and when it was met with another cry, I let my flame take over my whole arms. The air around them swirled and rippled with heat but I still couldn't see Alice.

"Eden!" her voice was so raw and rough that my heart stopped to listen to her next breath, "Please!"

That was my undoing. I let go of all barriers keeping my flames back, I let go of all my build-up rage and I thought of my broken soul lying on a stupid thin mattress waiting to die. I thought of Miles trapped here for her whole life. I thought about how I asked Alexei if they had my family, he said no and I trusted him. I believed him. My hearing blurred out. My flames now covered my chest, threatening to swallow me entirely.

I could hear distant banging, fists on metal and muffled yell from outside of the darkness, it sounded vaguely of my name but I didn't stop, couldn't stop. I would save my sister. I would kill Kier for ever laying a finger on her. I would burn this place down until it was just ash.

It was the second my flames projected from my body that I felt Alexei's hands on me and all my hearing came back at once, he was screaming my name, "EDEN!" I felt his body vibrate with his words, "THE CHILDREN!"

That's when I saw them.

Amongst the golden waves of death.

Their hollow tired faces were stretched with frightening terror. They were tied to their beds. Their small mouths covered.

I tried to take it back. To erase the tsunami of fire that covered them but it was too late. I knew it was too late but I kept screaming, "Take it back! Take it back! Take it back!" begging the flames to retreat.

Their burning muffled cries swallowed by the thick void.

 

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