Part Eleven

Waking up slowly her hands raised to her eyes and gently rubbed away the sleep which she had just been in. Moving her head slightly she felt something rough against her skin and then the chill which surrounded her. Something was wrong. Pushing her hands against the floor she felt the grit tear into her hands making them sting slightly, sitting up she saw the once magnificent pure white robe now tainted with dirt. Running her hands through her hair she looked up to find the girl she had seen earlier standing next to Christian and Phoenix. What the hell was Phoenix doing here?

“Wow I almost thought I had killed you!” Jane said almost sounding disappointed. Kirsten still felt dizzy, why did her head feel so big? Trying to rise to her feet she felt a strong crash against her head making her grab it and moan in pain. A mental punch… she assumed it was the girl from the way she was now grinning.

“Don’t bother getting up. There’s no need. I like you by there.” Jane said happily as she stroked the side of his face. “Oh why did you have to try and steal my man? Well I can see why you would, just look at him but seriously it was a stupid thing to do.”

“I…I…didn’t steal.” Kirsten stuttered. Phoenix walked over smiling smugly and gently caressed her face.

“So you ignored me all this time because you wanted him? What does he have that I don’t?” Phoenix whispered.

“A personality.” Kirsten said slowly. Something was making her weak, she could feel it. Everything she did was slow and heavy. Her whole body just wanted to shut down, as if all the energy had been sucked out of her… raising her hand to her throat she felt two small bumps and realised what had happened.

“Yes, well I did have to have a taste after Jane said you were so good. I have to say you do taste different to most witches.” Phoenix said as he licked his lips slowly. She saw his fangs, how delicately they came to a point and how white they seemed. Raising her hand with all the strength she had, she struck those fine points as hard as she could. He cried out in pain as he held his fangs. The fangs were one of the most sensitive parts of the body to a vampire. Phoenix span around and went to strike her but Jane grabbed hold of his fist.

“Now, now lets not do that. We’ll have all the fun we want later. It’s been such a long time since I’ve tortured someone, so we’ll have to do it slow to make it last.” Jane said happily as she led Phoenix over to where Christian was sitting. He was just sitting there, not doing anything, motionless. He didn’t even seem to be breathing.

“Can we start now? I want to get this over with.” Phoenix said as he looked at his watch.

“Why not, the sooner we ruin that pretty gown the better. It’s so white… so pure… so disgusting!” Grabbing hold of a knife she quickly slit the dress and some of Kirsten’s flesh and drew a line straight down the front of her torso. Blood formed at the cut and then started to soak the white dress, tainting it slowly as it soaked up more and more.

“That’s no fun!” Phoenix cried out in disgust. “The trick is to do small incisions but in different places so that it feels like her whole body is burning with pain. It’s a pity she isn’t a vampire I know this great trick where you-”

“Just get on with it!” Jane shouted. Shrugging Phoenix grabbed a small knife from the set Jane had carefully left out on a desk and kneeled down in front of Kirsten. Gently he pushed her hair out of her face and looked directly into her eyes.

“Now this isn’t going to hurt a bit.” He paused and then made a small cut on her thigh. Seeing her wince he started to laugh. “This is going to hurt a hell of a lot!” As he continued to cut her body all she could hear was his and Jane’s laughter mixing into one as the pain was drilled through her body.

“Amethyst just do it!” Astrid ordered as she chucked a necklace into her hands. Running her fingers over the jewel she stared at it in confusion as she didn’t understand the design on it.

“No! I will not go see them! Why can’t Onyx do it?” Amethyst whined. Seeing the oracles was never something she wanted to do as they were very temperamental and were known to take out their anger in very strange ways.

“Because I did it last time! Now stop being such a cry witch and get on with it. Ritual starting now so no arguments!” Amethyst was about to protest when she saw the mercury poured into the bowl of sand and knew that she had no choice now, once that was done you were going to see the oracles whether you liked it or not. Jet recited an old spell and then white light blasted through the wall. Walking towards it although fear seized her Amethyst just held the necklace tightly as a form of safety blanket.

“Why do you seek the oracles oh lower being?” The man asked as he appeared from behind the alter, the lady appearing a few moments after.

“I’m Amethyst a daughter of Hecate. I seek knowledge and enlightenment.” Amethyst concentrated as hard as she could, hoping that she wouldn’t stutter.

“What have you brought us?” The woman asked smiling kindly.

“I have brought you this.” Amethyst laid the necklace out in her palm and watched as it floated through the air into the woman’s hand.

“It is acceptable. What do you wish to know?”

“It’s regarding the wild power. She mixed her blood with the vampire and now she is missing. Where can we find her?” Amethyst asked eagerly.

“We are not a lost and found. If you have no other questions leave.”

“Does the fact that she mixed her blood with the vampire change things?”

“The true wild power has not been decided yet. As we have said before the witch and vampire need each other to survive and a choice made by the vampire will decide the wild power. Our wishes are with them but this is all we are able to say for now.” The man waved his hand and Amethyst felt herself being sent back through the dimensions and then hitting her head on the stone wall in the basement. Rubbing her head tenderly she looked up to find them all staring at her.

“He flicked his hand and I end up against a wall! What’s that about?”

“I know he did the same thing to me!” Onyx said with disgust.

“He is a higher being! He is allowed to be temperamental! Now what did he say about Kirsten?” Astrid asked impatiently.

“He said that the wild power has not been decided and that it will all be down to Christian. Also that he can’t tell us where they are. He’s useless!” Astrid covered Amethyst’s mouth quickly.

“Don’t say that!” She hissed. “They can here you!”

“Sorry! I didn’t know!” Amethyst said from behind Astrid’s mouth.

“So we just have to wait to find out what happens?” Jet asked sounding annoyed.

“Only time will tell.”

Standing with her hands chained to a pole she felt Phoenix’s hands run down her thighs as Jane cut just above her collar bone. Her once pure dress was dirty and blood stained. Despite the pain that felt endless she refused to cry, that would only let them win on more levels. She wouldn’t give them that satisfaction. Christian just sat there still, although not watching he wasn’t helping or even trying to which seemed to infuriate Jane.

“You know, I’m starting to wonder if he ever did care about you. I mean look at him, he has shown more interest in a fruit fly than he has in you tonight. I think we shall have to move onto the next stage.” Phoenix looked up at Jane in surprise.

“Are you sure? It’s a bit early. We’ve barely tortured her! She hasn’t even screamed!”

“She isn’t going to… she would die before she did. I can see it in her eyes. I think it’s time we let her feel the real pain. The emotional pain which will affect Christian as well. Just before we do, one more taste.” Feeling Jane’s lips against her skin and then light sensation of sucking she was surprised to find that it didn’t actually hurt although it was unnerving. Jane continued to drink her whilst all Kirsten could do was try and stop herself from screaming…

Jane walked confidently around the room, every now and then she would turn and smile at Kirsten, as if trying to mock her with the freedom. Nearing Christian she stopped in front of him and kissed him slowly but Christian didn’t seem to respond. Christian didn’t seem to be responding to anything anymore, he just sat there. In a way Kirsten found that better as watching him help Jane would destroy her, at least now she could try and convince herself that Christian was just unaware of what was going on. Kirsten could now feel the blood pouring out of her, a small pool had started to form around her feet staining the floor beneath. Phoenix sat towards the back lounging around like a big bored panther. Obviously the upcoming events weren’t going to interest him or he would want front row seats. Hopefully that meant Jane wasn’t going to cut her anymore.

“See I actually know what Christian is doing. He’s not helping you because he knows that if I know he cares about you I will hurt you more. He learnt that last time. You see last time it was a shape shifter and I was forced to decapitate her. It’s quite a funny story actually!” Jane sat on the table with her legs resting in-between Christian’s who was still sitting on the chair. “But we’re not here to catch up on old times are we? Well we can’t can we? You don’t know us, you’re new. Although soon you’ll be old… you’ll just be another name in the obituary.” Kirsten looked up and saw Jane’s hand playing with some of Christian’s hair. Still he just sat there. What was wrong with him?

“Why did you bring Phoenix into this?” Kirsten asked strongly. That was one of the questions that had plagued her all night, as far as she knew Jane was a nobody. Not even a remote celebrity in the night world. Darla was more famous than her! How did she manage to get Phoenix head of the made vampires here?

“It’s quite interesting actually. I knew who you were because you’re in the line of crones, everyone knows you and when I saw you getting all close to my boyfriend I knew I had to get rid of you. That night I went to see my brother and he just so happened to be staying with Lucas. Lucas was having dinner with Phoenix and there’s how we met.”

“How did you get him to pay you any attention? You’re a nobody!” Kirsten taunted. Maybe if she just kept Jane talking Christian would snap out of the trance he seemed to be in.

“You’re right. That’s why he beat me up first of all. Although when I came back he seemed to respect me for my persistence. We spoke and I told him all about my problems and when I mentioned your name he just wanted to jump right into it with me! Apparently you turned down his marriage proposal?” Jane smiled smugly as she divulged information which she knew Kirsten didn’t want brought up. To Kirsten Phoenix proposing had been a source of shame, after all for him to like her like that she would have to be like him and he was cold and evil… everything she hoped she wasn’t.

“Great so you got beaten up so he took pity on you and helped you. Couldn’t do it alone?” Jane walked over slowly, and then punched the side of her face as hard as she could. Her face seemed to sting even more now than her body which was cut all over.

“I could do it alone, but killing one of the main witch figures wont do much for me will it? I need someone to cover my tracks, someone with power.”

“Then why don’t you get it over with and just kill me. All of this talk is boring me. You must really be boring Christian, he looks out of it.”

“Christian isn’t out of it, he just doesn’t care. Why would he let me do all those things to you if he cared about you? It’s because he doesn’t.” Jane leant her head forward so that her nose was only inches away from Kirsten’s and smiled. It was a twisted smile and Kirsten knew it so she tried to mimic it back.

“I’m not out of it at all.” Christian said quietly as he rose from his chair.

“Ah yes! Christian is ready to play! How fun! Look now how about I tell you the game?”

“Go ahead.” Christian edged slowly towards them until Phoenix grabbed Christian and held him back.

“See how handy Phoenix is? You really don’t know what you’re missing!” Jane commented. “As I was saying here’s the game. It’s one player and Christian is that player. Christian has to decide who he really loves. If it’s me I will kill Kirsten and we will go on happily. If it’s Kirsten I will kill Christian and then keep Kirsten as my slave, or just sell her to Phoenix. Whatever tickles my fancy at the time.”

“You can’t make me choose.” Christian stated. His face was so emotionless it was hard to really see what he was thinking or feeling. He looked so stony that Kirsten wondered if this was the same guy she had fallen for, he didn’t seem like the man with the friendly smile and caring eyes.

“That’s where you’re wrong. If you don’t choose by midnight I’ll just simply kill you both.” Jane stated as if it were obvious.

“I thought you said you loved me.”

“What can I say, love fades. After all it must have faded for you to go off with Sabrina the teenage witch here!” Jane waved the small knife around in the air as she spoke and deliberately stuck it into Kirsten’s arm. “Opps! Sorry! My bad!” Jane started to laugh as did Phoenix.

“Stop doing that she’s not the one to blame take it out on me.”

“Is that you saying that you choose her over me?”

“No!”

“Choose Christian!” Jane screamed.

“No! I can’t!”

“Remember when I asked you if you would die for me? Well this is the same sort of situation, will you die for her?”