The First Touch

by Alice Sweet

  The first man spoke politely, “May I carry you?” Autumn nodded, and he swept her into his arms easily.

  She smiled sweetly and said, “Thank you.”

  He replied politely, as they made their way through the large stone home, “No problem.” The other man looked at the first and they shared a smile. Then they whisked her outside to a black suburban with heavily tinted windows.

  They drove for hours while she dozed in the back seat, mumbling to herself regarding the images that flashed before her eyes as her mind tried to make sense of the scenes. They arrived at another pier and loaded her onto a boat in the same manner as before, where even more men sat waiting for them. The soldier carried her to a large suite and told her he would be right outside if she needed anything. She raised her hand then asking, “What is your name?”

  He seemed taken aback by the question but replied truthfully, “I am Travis Madame.”

  She smiled politely and replied, “I am Autumn.”

  Travis replied slowly, “I know who you are Madame.”

  Autumn looked at him and asked, “What do you know about me?”

  Travis looked at the door and then back at her, “You are to be tested.”

  She nodded at a flash of a memory and replied, “Yes, what is today’s date?”

  Travis replied confidently, “The thirteenth Madame.”

  Autumn asked sounding scared, “Of what month?”

  Travis shot back cautiously as he made his way to the door, “Of March.” She stopped him with her hand and said incredulously, “I was asleep for two months?” Travis nodded then he disappeared closing the door softly behind him.

  Autumn lay back onto the soft bed and closed her eyes, dreaming of Ivan telling her about a test. She remembered that there was supposed to be danger, and power but the names were blurry. She was sure of one thing though, he had definitely told her that this test would involve pain, a lot of pain.

  She was not sure how long she had been laying there but Travis was next to her bed again, suddenly looking very anxious. He repeated his request again and Autumn asked, “What?”

  Travis asked for a third time this time more softly, “May I pick you up again Madame?”

  She nodded and asked, “What is wrong?”

  He slid his hands down and scooped her up saying, “We are here.”

  First

  Autumn did not recognize any of the faces standing on the dock to meet them when she arrived. But they did not look friendly or happy to see her and the man standing in the front snarled rudely at Travis, “Why are you carrying her?”

  “She is not strong enough to walk yet.”

  The man scoffed, “Put her down.” His tone began to set the fire in Autumn’s chest flaring and Travis set her down gently. Then he backed away without turning his back, his eyes never leaving her face.

  She stepped forward slowly, her legs barely holding her weight. The lead male watched her new born legs wobble as she tried to walk slowly. Then he gestured for two men to help her. He was obviously not convinced of her abilities and this display had confirmed his suspicions. The two men grabbed her arms and carried her at the elbow, her legs dangling inches above the ground. Sending the flame in her chest spiking again, and Autumn called out to Travis in her mind, “Thank you Travis.”

  The two men nearly dropped her in surprise, as Autumn looked back at Travis who was smiling back at her and nodded at her. Then the lead male gestured for the two other men to continue on again. This time he seemed slightly less agitated by her lack of ability to walk, and marched slower toward the waiting motorized carriage. It was black with a single coachman who opened the door bowing slightly, as she stepped up. She noticed then that everyone that she met was not surprised by her, even though she knew deep down that not one of them were human. A new aspect to her awakening she guessed, though she already had a list of question for Ivan when she finally saw him again.

  Autumn stepped inside the coach and sat down, opposite the rude male, and smiled to herself, this was easier than she thought that it would be. Aside from her frightening awakening and her heartache from being away from Ivan, she felt almost enchanted. As if she had just awoken in some sort of twisted fairy tale. This was just the type that had magic wizards and beautiful princesses with unicorn protectors and a handsome prince who sealed their love with a kiss. The rude man watched her reaction carefully and scowled at her smile, then looked out the small window at the passing scenery.

  After a few minutes, his anger flared, snapping, “Why are you smiling?”

  Autumn replied casually, as she looked around the red velvet lined space touching it softly, “I have never been in a carriage before. It is nice.”

  The rude man snapped angrily, “You are about to meet the council this night and you are excited by the carriage?”

  Autumn smiled feeling better, “I don’t think I will die today.” Then she paused asking her inner voice and then nodded in confirmation, “No, I will not die this day, or any day soon. As a matter-of-fact you will die before I do.”

  His eyes narrowed, “Are you threatening me?”

  Autumn looked at her hands that rested in her lap and replied, “No I am only telling you the truth.”

  He scoffed at her then and replied condescendingly, “You do not scare me, little girl. Do you know how many people survive these tests?”

  She met his eyes then, her own eyes clear and worry free, “No, how many?”

  He snarled back, “None. And it takes weeks to clean the smell out of the great hall after they are finished with them.”

  Autumn replied blankly, not taking the bait, “Then you should not have anything to worry about.”

  His tone turned deadly, “We are here; let us see how brave you are once they have you.” Autumn peered out the window at the large castle and drawbridge that lay open waiting for them to enter. It closed slowly behind them as they entered and she let out a sigh. Her thoughts replied, Yep I am in a fairy tale, a drawbridge and everything.

  The rain clouds that were sitting heavy above the castle finally burst and rain began pelting them as they made their way inside. By the time that they had all made it into the foyer Autumn was soaking wet and freezing. There was a small group of staff and guests waiting for them at the end near a large door. The excitement was high in the air as she passed them still being carried by the two guards.

  As they passed through the first set of doors the whispers began, “Is that her?”

  Another voice replied, “No that is not her.” Many of their eyes turned back to the main door, Autumn felt a rush relief for that. She was shaking violently with the cold and she imagined that she must look something like a wet rat right now.

  The guards made a sharp turn to the right and followed a long narrow corridor to a side door. The rude man went inside first telling them to wait for a moment, while he announced her. They finally sat her down and her heart began pounding then, Announce her? How many people was this test going to be in front of? She smiled to herself nervously, Yes, the rude man was right she was being absurd. She was about to be tortured to death and she wanted to know who would be watching. Then he came back out his eyes wide with fear, though she imagined it was for himself and not for her. He gestured nervously for them to hurry and bring her inside. They brought her out and sat her dead center in front of ten large ornate chairs. The chairs had been staggered by steps and pedestals to allow for all of them to see the space in front of them, where Autumn now sat shaking.

  Six of the chairs were occupied; Autumn zeroed in on Ivan first who sat alone on a chair in the upper right corner looking terrible. But her heart jumped at the sight of him anyhow. His skin was pale and he had dark circles under his beautiful blue eyes. She frowned then, even his cheeks looked sunken in. He would not look at her, even though she continued to stare at him. Her mind began to race, why won’t he look at me? Is he angry that I didn’t awake when he pleaded before? No he had continued to visit her, had she talked to
him in her sleep or something? No. The she huffed to herself, I am awake, so why was he not at my side?’ Her heart tightened as she tore her eyes away from him to look at the rest of the seats now, hoping to find some answers elsewhere. There were three other men and two women; she huffed again, so these would be her tortures.

  The first of the three men Autumn recognized from her earlier. His burning hands and black eyes were the same. He seemed disinterested in the proceedings though, instead looking at a stone in his hand, turning it over and over lost in thought it seemed. Then she turned her attention to the second man in the chair in front of fire hands. A thin small man sat, with large glazed brown eyes and bird like features, all coming to a point in the center of his pale face. She noticed that his white head even twitched the way that she had seen some small birds do. He watched her blinking his features unreadable. Autumn moved her gaze back to Ivan checking for any changes and seeing none she moved on to another face.

  The last of the three men was by far the largest of them all. He was nearly seven feet tall and built tough. He had massive arms, similar to men who competed in strong men competitions, only on a much larger scale. His face was like his body, square and muscular with chiseled features. His chocolate hair was cropped short, and his brown eyes were kind though and she felt instantly that this man would be fair in any dealings. The young looking female to his right cleared her throat and stared at Autumn with warning in her eyes.

  She liked this woman as well; she was sweet looking, almost innocent. Almost, her nose crinkled as she looked at her. Then her eyes shot back up to the large man’s face who still sat staring at Autumn. She realized then by watching the interaction that they were a couple. She smiled a small smile at the woman who did not even notice Autumn, her head so full of jealously now. She had long blond hair and childlike eyes that seemed a bit too large for her face. It was small and heart shaped, her skin was snowy white, but she used blush to give it a healthier glow. She also had a small mole just above her matching heart shaped lips, though Autumn could not tell if it was real or not. Next, she turned her gaze back to Ivan; he was still boring a whole into the ground. She felt a little more uneasy all of a sudden, Why would he not look at her?

  Lastly, she looked to the final female present, and watched as she eyed Autumn carefully from head to toe. By the time her eyes reached her face, she seemed to have summed Autumn up. Then she stared back at her unafraid, daring Autumn to do something to impress her. She knew then the type of woman that this one was, even before she opened her mouth to speak, and Autumn did not like her.

  She was beautiful, no doubt. She had a black razor cut jaw length hair style that made her look like a supermodel. No super models didn’t even look like super models in real life, she looked like what they strove to become. Her hair perfectly complimented her pale skin and form fitting black dress that ended with long perfectly formed legs. Her eyes were sky blue and her make up was expertly applied to compliment them. Even her lips were large and pouty as so many women in the spot light had tried to accomplish with injections and the like. She watched as the woman slid her ivory hand through her glossy black crop of hair and then inspected her manicured nails, obviously losing interest in the proceedings just as fire hands had already.

  As Autumn felt the pressure fading she spoke, “Where is Grayton and Serena?” The hissing that followed from the super model made her realize then that she was not suppose to be talking, just yet.

  Autumn stared at the ground and the large man chastised the model, “Helen, be polite.”

  He turned his attention to Autumn again after whispering to his mate to his right, “Stand up.” She gave a small smile and then tried to stand and slowly gained her footing after a few attempts. When she finally felt stable she looked up to see the largest man’s eye brow cocked analyzing her.

  Then he asked, “Why are you having trouble standing? And why have your eyes not changed?” Autumn looked at Ivan and his eyes remained glued to the ground, though he seemed to seriously be struggling with his decision, as he was beginning to shake in his seat. Autumn swore to herself then realizing that she was on her own. She looked up at fire hands who was watching her closely now, still turning the pebble in his hands. She answered shrugging and trying to sound casual, “I just awoke yesterday. At least I think it was yesterday? I am not sure the days and nights are still blurring together.”

  The large man looked disbelieving, “You should be able to stand.”

  Then he shot back over his shoulder to fire hands, “You said her eyes had changed.”

  Fire hands shot back angrily, “They were changed when I left her last.”

  Autumn spoke then defending him, “They change when I am in danger.” All eyes were now on her, even the ones that she had wanted so badly to see.

  Ivan’s eyes were blood shot and red rimmed and Autumn found the effect disheartening. His look was a warning but she was not sure why. He averted them quickly again and Autumn almost lost her balance then.

  The large man waved at another who appeared from behind a door to the left then. He was yet another excellent example of the male gender. He had red hair and bright green eyes with mutton chops framing high cheek bones and a strong jaw line. He did not seem to notice Autumn until no one seemed to notice him. Then he turned to see what all of the fuss was about and his jaw dropped. The large man continued then ignoring the man, “Not until danger?”

  Fire hands spoke up then, “Her eyes did not change until after I set Gregory on fire.”

  The red head interjected then sounding cheerful now, “You set Gregory on fire eh?”

  Fire hands replied reluctantly, “He tried to hurt the girl.” All eyes were now on him and he shrugged then added, “I didn’t kill him, I just singed him a bit.” The big man said something in a foreign tongue to a guard and he disappeared.

  The big man looked at Autumn again with softer eyes now and asked cautiously, “Is that why she cannot stand?”

  Fire hands answered a little quieter, “I do not think so. I stopped him before he was able to accomplish what he had come for, though his sent was all over her.” The two women seemed to understand first, sucking in and shaking their heads disgusted.

  The blond spat, “You should have killed him Drake.” Everyone else seemed to agree nodding in approval to the statement.

  Ivan sat silently still trembling with the rage building in his chest gripping his chair so tightly that he looked as though he might burst. Autumn could feel it and it gave her a feeling of power over her current predicament. If Ivan was angry then he cared about her still, which meant that she was going to be alright. Autumn’s wide smile broke on her face as she looked at the faces that now looked at her as if she were an idiot. The blond asked curiously her perfectly formed eyebrows arching slightly, “Why are you smiling?”

  Autumn turned her head and decided that the truth was the best, “When I get better, I can track him down and kill him and no one will stop me.”

  All of their eyes were wide except Drake’s; he smiled still turning the rock in his hand. Then red head broke into a wide smile as well, standing as if on cue and walked towards Autumn saying, “I like her already.” He stood and walked over to stand in front of Autumn and said placing his hand on her shoulders shaking her lightly, “Are you ready love?”

  “I guess.” Ivan hissed his disapproval instantly though still not looking at Autumn, “She can barely stand I hardly think you could say that she is ready for this test Henry.”

  Helen hissed back instead, “Trying to protect your pet are you Ivan?” Ivan growled nearly jumping from his chair to tear her apart, when the pretty blond began to hum softly and Ivan sat back in his chair again.

  His growling did not cease, though his eyes closed and then he returned to his initial state of looking at the floor again, breathing heavily. Autumn scowled at the blond and stepped closer to her sending more hisses from the crowd this time aimed at her. She stopped her advance, as Henry stood and ge
stured for Flanagan to begin the test. Then she breathed her warning in the cold voice that came from behind her eyes, “If Ivan is harmed, I will kill you all.”

  The echo that followed it was omnivorous and eerily familiar to Autumn. The silence that followed her declaration was deafening, and Autumn closed her eyes and shook her head clearing the cold from her mind. She tasted the blood in her throat at the effort that it took to push it back this time it was strong and hungry now after waiting so long to be released. When she looked up she saw the surprise on all but one of their faces. Ivan was shaking in his chair his eyes closed tightly still fighting against himself.

  Flanagan finally replied his eyes still wide, “Well, I think she is ready to test.” Henry nodded and gestured again not taking his eyes from Autumn as he did this time. The red head began to form something with his hands though she could not see anything. He began stacking it on top of an invisible wall, one brick at a time.

  Autumn asked puzzled, “What are you doing.”

  The red haired man replied seriously now, “You should put your game face on if we are going to play.”

  She looked puzzled and whispered, “Game face.” She looked at the ground pacing while trying to bring the cold on. Suddenly the idea hit her and she stopped pacing and she looked at Drake eyeing him cautiously.

  Autumn asked softly then, “Drake?” He looked up at her his eyes still glazed and she asked timidly, “Could I see the flame again?” He raised his eyebrow and she added logically, “I think it will help me to bring it out.” Drake hesitated then and she dropped her gaze staring at the ground feeling foolish again. Though she knew it was better than the alternative which was attacking Blondie and setting off a chain reaction that she knew that she could not yet control. Ivan might get hurt, she reminded herself and she could not live with that.

  The red head saw her reaction and then looked at Drake encouraging him, “You heard the lass, bring on the fire.” Drake sat up slowly and his hands blazed brightly for a moment and then he chucked the now smoldering pebble at Autumn She moved lightning fast and felt her skin ice over as she stared at the burning pebble. All of them watched her in alarm, even Drake, who seemed pleased by her changed state.