Follow the Screams (The Executioner Trilogy Book 2)

by Kindra Sowder

  I had heard laughter, high pitched and maniacal, within the trees. Sweat had broken out across my forehead in beads. All I could do was turn towards every pair of eyes staring at me, and I had even lost count of how many I had seen. I wasn’t ready. My first fight for my life in Hell, and I wasn’t ready. I had no weapons, and I had felt abandoned. My power had only a certain strength on the surface, but I hadn’t been sure if it was strong enough for all of this. I had even been severely weakened on the surface. Weakened enough for Lilith to get the upper hand and end my life with a blade, instead of her own hands. My body was still reeling from the impact of hitting the ground, and I had been deathly sure I couldn’t handle it. Not even with the amount of adrenaline coursing through my veins at that moment.

  Surrounded by the trees and the darkness and the eyes staring at me, I was easily confused and turned around. I wasn’t sure which way was which, and I was beginning to panic. It happened so fast I barely saw it. One of the creatures flew at me in a blue flash and I was in the air and then fell against a tree. I heard the tree crack and whine on impact, some small shards of charcoal fell from the branches and onto the ground around me. I sat there stunned, immobile form the shock of what had just happened. My eyes blurred for a quick second, and once my vision was back a woman with deep blue hair and pale skin was leaning over me. She had a symbol carved into her forehead that I could barely make out. Kind of like a scar. It was a circle with a plus sign in it, and the lines extended past the border of the circle. Her skin was a pale blue, her lips a violet purple, and her eyes blood red. This was definitely a creature I had never seen before, but then again I didn’t usually take strolls into black forests in Hell.

  Her hair had streaks of black in it and fell past her shoulders, covering her breasts. The rest of her was covered in black cloth that mirrored the black charcoal trees. Her veins were so dark underneath her transparent skin that they looked like tree branches branching into her face. A terrifyingly beautiful creature. Her nails were long and caked with ash. She seemed inquisitive at first. That was, until she looked into my eyes and saw something that hinted to her what I was. She pulled her lips back in a snarl and exposed a row of decaying, sharp teeth that looked like they were made for ripping people’s throats out.

  She screamed into my face and spittle flew onto my skin, making me feel filthy. Then there was a moment of utter silence as she looked into my eyes for signs of fear. Don’t get me wrong, the fear was there, but I wasn’t going to let it show. Not now. I had to stand my ground here. I was the new kid on the block after all, and I wouldn’t be bullied into a corner.

  That was the moment I felt the beast like a strong presence for the first time, like falling into Hell had awoken it and it was thirsty for blood. I could feel it like smoke filling my lungs during a house fire and there was no stopping it. I felt the heat fill my eyes and their amber glow reflected in hers, and I saw the fear register. I was sure this wasn’t what she had planned on. Every other Executioner before had a power of their own, but I’m sure none of them had the power of this beast that left everything burned to ash in its wake. I could feel a voice rising from within my belly and up into my throat, looking to escape its meat and bone prison through my mouth. I almost gagged when the lump had built up in my throat. It was almost painful, and I was fighting to keep it down. The creature leaning above me spoke, and I was shocked at what she said.

  “Let it go, Executioner. I want to see what you’re made of.” Her sing song voice was low and melodic, each syllable sliding out of her mouth like a snake. “I have killed most other Executioners that were unfortunate enough to make it into my forest if they survived the fall.”

  I had survived it and was scared into running in a direction that I was beginning to regret. Why did I have to run into the line of trees where I knew there were things I had never seen before? I wish I knew. Instinct maybe. I was a killer of evil, and apparently there was a lot of evil in this forest. It was like I was drawn to it like a magnet. What an unfortunate truth that was. I think I just had unlucky branded on my forehead and I was the only one who couldn’t see it. I made the decision, right then and there, to let go for the first time. I had always kept this side of myself under control, but here I felt like it was trying to tear through me to get to the evil in front of me. As soon as the decision was made I heard a scream rip from me the likes of nothing I had ever heard before, and if I wasn’t scared of it before I sure was now.

  I could tell this was something she had never seen before because fear registered in her face and in her eyes. It was like I was looking at her through a veil. I could feel it writhing inside of me, ready to take on anything. It was touching every inch of me from the inside and caressing the most innocent parts, corrupting them and turning them savage. It was like I was barely there at all, and only able to watch as the beast took over and devoured me. My body broke out in a cold sweat and the cry erupted again, light pouring from my eyes and mouth. The creature backed away. A barrage of others behind her had come out of the shadows and crept up to stand around her and watch the show as the monster completely took over. Little did they know that this would mean their destruction.

  I had made so many sacrifices before then, and I was making one more. It just happened to be my entire being. I stood and it was like all I could do was watch. I wasn’t in control anymore and a smile spread over my lips; a smile that promised annihilation. I could feel the heat building in my chest and as I put my arms out, it began to flow into my palms just like at the hospital. I could see the bright light flowing into them and I knew what was about to be unleashed, and I knew it was going to be a beautiful release of power and obliteration.

  I felt a few silent tears roll down my cheeks as the heat built in my palms to the point of burning them from the inside out. This was the price I’d pay for the power. My eyes and hands burned, I felt like I had liquid fire in my throat, and the light pouring from me was blinding to them. The small army of creatures had their hands blocking out the light from their eyes, but couldn’t back away. They were drawn to the power like a moth to a flame.

  A few of them seemed to realize what was going on and began to crawl away, but it looked like it was happening in slow motion. I was high on the power despite the pain and I reveled in the joy of seeing them turn to run in fear and terror. I felt even better about the ones that stayed that were about to learn what I was made of. Wasn’t that what they wanted to see anyways? Well, I was about to make their wish come true. I committed to it now, and I was going to deliver.

  A roar poured out of me and fire came from the palms of my hands in a bright flash, taking out the creatures on either side of their leader. A few were still left behind with her, and some of them were completely covered in flames, screaming frantically for their lives. They fell to the ground, whimpering from pain and I could feel their lives slip away until there was nothing left in them. The purple haired woman looked on in shock and horror, but when she turned to me I could see she wanted ultimate revenge. I had killed her pack of followers, and she vowed to kill me in that moment. I couldn’t help but think she would needs a lot of luck to accomplish that. I wasn’t in control right then, but I knew that the beast could take care of her on its own.

  She yowled into the air and her remaining two came towards me like she had spoken an unheard command. As soon as they were both within arms reach, I turned to the one on my left and closed my hand onto her face. I let the heat flow again and her head began to slowly crumble away into ash. I quickly turned to the one to my right and grabbed her bottom jaw, forcing her mouth open as wide as it would go until I felt it pop under my fingers. I then leaned over her and liquid fire spewed from my mouth and into hers, spreading through her like wild fire. I let her go and she dropped to the ground, convulsing and curling up into a ball. As her leader watched, she was burned up from the inside out and there was no way of stopping it. She became a perfect statue of ash within seconds.

  I stood my ground and I cou
ld see the woman shaking before me. She then did something unexpected. She turned and ran, and I let her go. Wasn’t even sure why. I fell to the ground, breathing heavy and extremely fatigued. The beast began to slip back into its cage and I felt like I could breathe again. I lied there for what seemed like hours and then decided to move. The rest is history. Now, I was just hoping she wouldn’t come back to finish what she started. I knew I’d be ready though, that was for sure.

  The memory brought a chill that ran up my spine, relentless, and I shuddered. Would every memory here be like this? Filled with violence, fire, ash, and rage? I was beginning to think so.

  Chapter 3: The Beast Within

  There was no way I was going to be able to bandage my shoulder so all I could really do at this point was take some of the pure ash on the ground and place some of it on top of the wound. Its searing heat cauterized it so the blood would stop flowing. This was the best solution I could find here. I couldn’t help but grimace as I felt the sting from the heat of the black powder on my raw flesh. I could even see a few ambers still blazing when they met my skin like it was reacting to the blood and it made them return to life. That made perfect sense to me I guess.

  This place was death and destruction. It would make sense that even the smallest breath of life from my blood would revive it somehow even in the tiniest bit. The warmth from the fire to my immediate right was so warm I could close my eyes and imagine that it was from the sun beating down on me. As I felt the warmth heat my cold skin I let out a sigh and leaned back against one of the blackened trees along the forest’s edge. I sat there with my eyes shut and I could hear distant screams of the damned trying so hard to free themselves from their liquid fire and brimstone prisons. There was no way out for them. They were meant to be here. I, on the other hand, wasn’t.

  There had to be a way out for people who weren’t meant to be here in the first place. There just had to be. The beast I had felt within me for so long after meeting Beth was a lingering presence the whole time I had been here now, and it was getting stronger. Like it was beating on my head and my ribcage with every heart beat like it wanted out. I wasn’t going to let it out down here unless it was absolutely necessary. There would be no telling what would happen once I let that happen. Maybe I would be meant for this place then and would never be able to leave. Maybe even possibly the beast would completely take over my body and I would be stuck on the inside trying to overcome the beast I had let consume me after fighting it for so long.

  The beast that I had kept so easily contained and repressed on the surface was now trying so much harder to escape. It seemed it was responding to my imprisonment. Like it knew that it had to come out for me to survive. I seemed to be doing just fine without letting it lose, if the wound on my collarbone didn’t mean anything at all. It was getting harder to resist, especially with every small battle I encountered, or every demon or creature that crept past me. In the darkness and fire light its eyes would be blinking red with or without presence of any light source just like the small embers floating through the still and hot air.

  As I looked up at what I could best assume was a sky, there was nothing there. No stars, no clouds. There was just the smoke and the darkness, with scattered embers flashing in the darkness that surrounded them. They leant very little light and left everything to the imagination. What was beneath that darkness? I had a feeling I would never know, but at the same time I was terrified of what could be there. So not knowing was okay by me. What was up there in the darkness could have very well been much worse than anything surrounding me on the ground.

  I looked at the fire and watched it dance beside me. There had to be others in this place that weren’t meant to be here besides me, right? I knew there had to be. Underneath all of the evil I sensed here I could feel the tiny presence of something good. I could feel it searching as well. I reached out with my mind and gently caressed the edge of the white light that made up the mind of whoever this was. Exhaustion was overtaking me and my mind was propelled away from this other presence. I wanted so badly to be able to grab onto it and hold onto it with everything I had left.

  With knife in hand and gripped so tight my knuckles were turning white, I scanned the blackness beyond the fire beside me. I couldn’t see anything beyond it, like that’s all there was. Like this fire was the last of the light left and I had to hold onto it as best as I could. I had to defend it with all that I had.

  I could hear the whispers of the creatures around me. Most of them liked to stay within the confines of the black forest behind me. The farther in you went the more dangerous things became. The same went for the farthest you went from the edge of the forest. It was like the line of trees was a free zone where nothing evil could occupy it.

  So why didn’t I stay here where I knew I’d be safe? I was searching. Searching for companionship in this place as well as someone who knew a way out. I was going to find them. The other soul I had touched in this place gave me a glimmer of hope and I couldn’t give up on it. That’s what the creatures here strived for. They wanted to strip away all of your hope and leave you there broken and desperate.

  Sure I was desperate, but broken? Not even close. I wanted to remain that way. I was still strong and resilient, if not more so now than I was before. I leaned my head back against the tree and closed my eyes. The warmth beside me was making it easy to be tired. I drifted into complete darkness and saw Gordon again.

  I was lying on my bed, him beside me, propped up on his elbow. He was looking down at me as moonlight drifted in through the curtains, a smile plastered on his face. This was how I wanted to remember him. The light made his eyes sparkle even more, adding to his beauty. He leaned down and kissed me, deeply and passionately and as he pulled away I didn’t want him to. He leaned down again and kissed the scar along my right collar bone and moved across to my left.

  Then I felt it. His teeth dug into my left collar bone and searing pain spread like wildfire. I screamed and lashed out, my fist making a connection with the side of his head and when he looked at up at it wasn’t Gordon. It was the demon I had just wasted. His mouth was covered in my blood and it dribbled from his chin.

  I jolted awake with a scream and really had to work to slow my racing heart. I had never seen Gordon like that but maybe that was one thing I was scared of. That Gordon was here and that was what he had turned into.

  Chapter 4: Blood on Fire

  I walked along the edge of the dark forest, letting what little light there was lead the way. I could hear the rustling of what lived behind the line of trees. This only made the feeling of something about to burst from within me even stronger. It was beating against the barrier my skin created, and screaming to be free. It was stouter with every growl that erupted.

  I could hear its hungry howls within the confines of my mind, and I knew it wanted to be free of its skin and bones prison. The harder I fought it, the harder it clashed back. A flash of the nightmare I had came to mind. Instead of the demon, I could see Gordon’s face. It was contorted like an animal, my blood dripping down his chin from where he had bitten me.

  I stopped in my tracks and leaned against one of the trees behind me. My hands went to my head as I felt like my skull was about to crack open and spill the beast from inside it. I slid down the tree and to my knees when the rigidity in my chest started. It felt like a burning tension that I couldn’t escape. The beast screamed within me and I could sense I was drawing evil towards me with my power. They were drawn to any power that I possessed, and with it trying to break free I was a sitting duck. I could imagine a dragon like creature covered in crusted scales stopping to sniff the air, and coming towards me with swiftness.

  I could feel all sorts of demons and vampires being drawn to me, like I was a beacon. I had to stop this before I turned up dead. Death here was final, and I knew that. So I was going to do all I could to prevent it, and at that moment what I needed to do was stop the surge of power coming from within me.

  I knew if
I couldn’t stop it, I had to at least keep moving. I didn’t need a herd of evil beings catching up with me. They would rip me apart. I tried to rise to my feet, but the cracking in my skull and the burning behind my rib cage stopped me. I would have to crawl like an infant. No way around it.

  The pain was almost unbearable and I wanted to give in, but I didn’t want to belong here. I feared that if I let it take over I would be meant for this place. I was in no way going to let that happen. I was meant to be with human beings. With good, not this evil. Was it really evil, or was that just the fear talking? I couldn’t be too sure, but you could never be too careful. I leaned on my arms and tried to crawl towards safety, wherever that would be. My arms were too weak to hold my weight and they were shaking. Sweat was pouring off of me, soaking my clothes and leaving me shivering.

  I leaned back against the tree and gave up trying to move. My breathing felt strained. Then I noticed something. A soft orange glow was pulsating behind my ribs along with my heart beat. It would grow brighter and then dim, brighter and then dim again. The light would surely draw anything that could see it. Hell, they could already sense the power. The light would only bring them closer.

  I could hear the screams of the damned in the distance, and then another sound that chilled me to the bone. I felt all of the color and heat drain from my cheeks, and the flashing light sped up with my heart beat. A deep, rumbling roar that shook the earth ripped through the air and the roar inside of me answered in warning. I put my hands over my heart and took deep and even breaths. I was going to make this stop before whatever that was found me. I wasn’t in the shape to fight it off. The rumbling inside of me turned into a hum and then slowly dissipated. I looked down as my chest and the glow was beginning to subside. That was it. If I stayed calm I would be okay.