Darlings

by Ashley Swisher

  Ry picked up a jagged ruby red rock and turned to leave. “Tonight.” He whispered just before he disappeared.

  “Are you crazy?” Lily angrily hissed, her almond chocolate eyes full of intensity. You told him about tonight?” More foreign cursing.

  “Lily, no. He’s…going to help us.” Gwen explained Rynnal’s role to Lily. She told her the extent of their short conversation. She listened closely as they monotonously worked.

  “I never would have guessed. Odd Rynnal. Odd Rynnal’s an alchemist. Huh.” Lily shrugged. “Well you still should have told me,” She snipped, her hands moving swiftly, puffy lips pursed.

  The horn sounded and the prisoners stopped what they were doing immediately. Brown dust rose all around them from the abrupt stopping of the laborers feet. A guard walked slowly out of a steel door on the right to the almost finished podium. It was made of some sort of gray stones about ten feet high. Stairs were all around it, reminding her of some sort of temple. A large huge ring made of steel sat upright in the middle. Gwen wondered if they would set it on fire and order prisoners to jump through like some kind of sick circus.

  “What’s the circle for?” Gwen asked Lily quickly.

  “I don’t know. That’s what I’m afraid of.” Lily answered eyeing Tiger who was standing at attention beside her friend.

  The guard shuffled slowly up the podium. He was short with holes for a nose and a chunk missing from his cheek, revealing his pointed teeth.

  Once at the top, he cleared his throat. “Princess Darling. Get your royal ass up here,” He grunted. Looking around he searched the crowd. Gwen’s heart stopped. She looked to Lily for guidance, but was instead met with a look of sheer terror through Lily’s usually tough exterior. “Princess!” he growled again. She looked around as prisoners skeptically parted, making a clear path for Gwen to make her grand walk to the suspicious podium. Inhaling deeply, Gwen took the first step. Put one foot in front of the other she told herself, attempting to avoid eye contact with the other inmates. Their eyes pierced her like knives. Whispers spread through the crowd. They bounced off the lips of the walking skeletons like tiny bowling balls on sinister trampolines. Oh no. Poor girl. What will they do to her? She put on her game face she made her way to the podium, chin held high. Climbing the stairs, she braced herself for whatever was to come. The guard grabbed her slender arm so hard she feared it was broken. He yanked her directly in front of the large circle. The pirate plugged a remote into the back of Gwen’s green collar.

  “We’re going to find out what your ability is darling,” he smiled as he snapped a heavy chain around her ivory leg. Gwen examined the restraint. It was connected to the cement stage by a large hook. She stood strong knowing there was no getting free. Panic took over her trembling body. They couldn’t know. Closing her eyes she prayed, whatever happens I truly am sorry lord, please don’t cast me out now.

  The pirate picked up a bag of powder and threw it into the center of the circle. Nothing happened right away, but soon a dark cloud began to emerge. It swirled, slowly building momentum inside the steel ring. The size of her hand and looked like a ball of gloomy gray cotton candy it spun. Gwen had the urge to reach out and touch the small thunderstorm like cloud but decided against it. The cloud swirled faster and faster as it began to howl and grow. It transformed from a freak show circus treat into the top view of a full on tornado. A tornado, Gwen thought. They were going to throw her into the depths of a man-made tornado.

  Wind blew hard as Gwen struggled to keep her balance. The crowd shielded their faces from the flying dust and debris, but still refused to look away. She soon noticed the Captain pushing his way up the stairs against the wind. He moved slowly and deliberately, as if he were trudging through thick mud. He reached the top just in time to see the face appear. A fairies face; white and pointed. She had black hair and an ankle length midnight dress, lacey straps draped over her protruding shoulders. Opening her large mouth, a dull scream escaped her throat. She threw her head back as her body began to shake in a seizure like manor. Gwen was scared. So scared. Suddenly, like a fuzzy television, the ring began to give out. It zapped and flickered until the murky whirlwind disappeared. Just that like it was gone. All was still.

  “Schmeedie” the captain said calmly, hands placed behind his back. “What seems to be the problem?”

  Hobbling over to the ring, the white haired guard threw more powder into the ring. Still nothing. He stood at bent attention, facing his commander.

  “Out of power sir,” he said wearily.

  Jamison Hookner nodded and said, “Drain a few…completely.” “Aye aye.” The guard responded motioning to his comrades in the crowd to follow orders and select a few immortals to have the life literally sucked out of them to power the ring.

  “Wait!” Gwen screamed. The captain stopped just before reaching the doors. “Take my blood. It’s royal. It will surely be enough to power your ring,” she said without thinking. Just before reaching the doors, the captain turned and smiled.

  “How noble of you Gwendylon. Sadly your blood won’t power my ring. It needs cold hard energy. Energy I can only get from the abilities of you immortals.” Making piercing eye contact with Gwen, he walked away, knowing the agony she would suffer would be far greater than any punishment he could have given her for speaking out. She would have yet more blood on her hands. Gwen pulled at her restraint as the guards began making their way through the crowd. They searched faces as they began their hunt. “Eenie meanie miney mo,” a tall, burley pirate sang as he looked through the crowd. His beard was black and his face was green in spots.

  “Which ones have got to go?” another slim pirate with a pointed chin and scared mouth finished. They laughed sinful laughs as they pranced through the onlookers. Gwen’s stomach dropped as they made their way to Lily. No, she’s not immortal, Gwen reminded herself; she’s safe. Tiger too. They’re safe. The pirate continued on his path toward Lily and Tiger. Behind Tiger stood a woman with bouncing red curls and a missing arm. She held tightly to her daughter…Marriam. The tall pirate grabbed the red head by her surviving arm.

  “Yes. You,” he said. “Almost worthless, this one here is with one arm.”

  “No!” the little girl screamed. “Mama!” she clung to her mother’s canvas skirt. “Marriam, go to Nima. Go on dear. It’s ok.” The little girl squished her face and held on tighter. Looking to the pirate she shook her arm free and hugged her daughter. She looked into her eyes and whispered, “I love you Mimi.” The woman smiled as she cried. “We’ll be together again.” Refusing to let go, the pirate kicked the girl to the ground and pulled her mother to her faltering feet.

  “Go on, you brat! If you were old enough I’d take you too!” he shouted ushering the screaming woman out the doors. Another woman, who Gwen assumed was Nima, took the sobbing girl in her arms and buried her face into her chest.

  Hot tears stung her face. Something, she had to do something. She couldn’t let them down. Not again. But she was helpless.

  Suddenly, a laugh resounded throughout the crowd. A hysterical laugh. Where was it coming from? A boy. A tall blond boy with crooked glasses taped together and awkwardly large hands tucked into his pockets…Rynnal. “You think this is funny, do you, boy?” the pirate hollered, examining Ry’s face. “Look at these things,” the pirate said throwing his makeshift spectacles to the ground.

  No. Gwen made eye contact with the now almost blind Rynnal. No, she thought to herself. No. She needed him. She yanked once more on the heavy chain holding her, stuck to the thick dreary concrete slab. “Let’s go,” the tall pirate growled, as he led Ry to the steel doors. He didn’t resist. He didn’t struggle. He only smiled and shouted, “We will meet again! Again I say, Again!” and Gwen swore. She swore she saw him wink just before he disappeared to meet his death.

  Chapter 9

  The words crazy and mad escaped the solemn lips of the remaining onlookers, though Gwen knew Rynnal was not mad, she knew he was not crazy…at least s
he hoped she knew. What would they do when they couldn’t get power from Rynnal? Gwen didn’t know. “Get back to work, you pissants!” a guard bellowed as the crowd stood lifeless, watching two of their own get hauled off to meet their frightful fates. Gwen stood still. Not able to move or breathe. She had killed them. She was responsible for two deaths again. They would die, so her captors could uncover her ability. Why didn’t she just tell them? Tiger, Lily, Pete, Andrew, her brothers…that’s why she reminded herself, still unable to shake the gut wrenching guilt. A slight wind blew her wavy hair across her lips.

  “Get,” the guard said as Gwen heard the click of her shackle’s lock, as it fell from her bony ankle. “It’ll take until tomorrow to charge this thing. Then we’ll see the goodies.” He smiled a crooked smile as he shoved Gwen down the cement stairs. Realizing the horrific scene was over, everyone got back to work…that is everyone except Marriam. She stood, sobbing, beside a wash bucket filled with her mother’s killers’ attire…that she was expected to scrub clean and hang perfectly to dry.

  Gwen clenched her teeth as she walked to meet Lily and Tiger once more at the rock pile. She picked up a rock and began scraping ferociously. Sensing Gwen’s hostility, Lily grabbed her wrist. “Don’t take it out here. Take it out tonight. The last thing you want to do is chop off a finger.”

  Gwen jerked her hand away. She would take her anger out when night fell, just not at all how Lily expected her to. They were quiet as they worked. Gwen got up and decided to work alone on the far side of the huge circular arena, and Lily patiently let her go.

  She sat examining the dirt and saw a few springs of plant creeping through the dust floor. It was turquoise and soft as silk. Grass, she assumed, though much prettier than the grass she’d known. She studied the cement walls wondering what it was like on the outside. Remembering the scene in Pete’s room, she imagined she was there, a soft breeze blowing the sparkling water up around her ankles. Would she ever get to see Everland for what it really was? It didn’t matter anymore. She had a much more important task to focus on now, and it kept getting more difficult every time she turned around. Just then, the horn sounded and Gwen threw down her rocks, stomping to the line-up.

  “Breakfast,” Lily said succinctly.

  Gwen nodded. They marched slowly through the long halls and out into the cow shoot. Manticans were slaving way in the open field. Gwen searched through the yard and saw Andrew

  working in his animal form in his usual cart-pulling harness. She felt the tug inside pulling her his way. Forcing herself to look away, she marched on. Even though she knew he couldn’t hear her, she touched her mark anyways and shouted madly behind the mental walls, Tonight! We’ll be out tonight…one way or another. Throwing her hand back to her side, Gwen kept pace in the single file line.

  They entered the gloomy dining hall, as Gwen’s stomach growled at the thought of food. She hadn’t realized how little she’d eaten since arriving. Her mind wandered to fluffy scrambled eggs lightly salted placed next to a heaping pile of sweet blueberry pancakes drizzled with maple syrup. She could almost smell the citrusy aroma of freshly squeezed orange juice. Orange juice. She would have died for a glass of orange juice. Instead of the scrumptious morning feast she had imagined, she was met with a scoop of foul smelling, gel-like substance being slopped into her tin bowel in the breakfast line. Gwen had no idea what it was. She poked it with her finger and cringed as it jiggled like a slimy, thick Jello paste. Rotten eggs and wet decaying fall leaves. Yes, that’s what it is, she thought to herself as she keened down to smell it.

  She took her place next to Lily as she opened her mouth and ceased breathing while stuffing the paste to the back of her tongue. Don’t chew, just swallow, she coached herself. Lily did the same. Tiger seemed not to mind the vulgar meal. Gwen figured she had probably never tasted the sweet juice of a perfectly ripe Georgia peach, or the crunch of flawlessly golden brown fried chicken paired with a cloud of mashed potatoes and sweet creamy butter. Good slop, okay slop, and sloppy slop were on the girl’s daily, weekly, and yearly menu.

  “When we get out, first thing on our agenda is to get Tiger some real food,” Gwen stated as she fought back vomit.

  “I’ve thought of that often,” Lily replied. “I miss food. Real delicious food,” she trailed off as she closed her chocolate eyes, imagining her favorite meals now not so far away. “What do you think about Rynnal. How will we do it without him?”

  Gwen shook her head and shrugged her slender shoulders. “I don’t know. Something seemed…off though didn’t it? It was as if he had gone crazy.”

  Lily nodded slowly as she choked down her last glop of breakfast. “I’ve seen it before. Prisoners losing it before being brought to their deaths. It happens.”

  “Yah. I suppose it would,” Gwen agreed, furrowing her thin eyebrows in thought, “but the way he said it. He’d see us again. It was as if he were mocking it. Like he wasn’t serious. Like he knew something we didn’t but couldn’t tell us.”

  The dark haired beauty set her tin bowl aside and considered it. “Possible, but what?”

  “That’s the question. He was too smart, too controlled to go out that way. “The more I think about it the more I am sure he had a plan.” Gwen reiterated that statement to herself. He had a plan, she thought. He had to have a plan…God let him have a plan. Gwen knew she couldn’t do it without him. She knew she’d be able to borrow Tiger’s ability but using it and giving it back were the parts she wasn’t so sure of.

  “True. I guess we’ll find out.”

  The horn sounded and back to the lineup they went. Gwen’s hunger was now dulled to a loud growl instead of the rumbling roar of before. They walked out the now familiar doors once more and into the cow shoot. Andrew was still slaving away, though this time he was closer to the fence. They made eye contact as Gwen marched past. She heard it like static as she saw him raise his massive paw to his chest. Be...careful. She stopped in her tracks and stared at him as he nodded to her. She heard him.

  A boy behind her pushed her ahead. “Go,” he said. “I don’t want whipped.” Gwen stumbled forward as she was swept away by the long serpent of fellow prisoners. She had really heard him. The wall was cracking. Her ability was getting stronger. For the first time, Gwen had felt somewhat…proud of her extraordinary gift. She was splintering the boundaries her enemies had built around her. She was breaking through. Hold on Andrew. Hold on, she thought as he disappeared out of sight.

  It was finally full fledge daylight Gwen noticed as they marched back into the arena. There were two suns in the sky that day. One was a pinkish color and one definitely orange. Gwen was confused, but decided that was a topic she could save for a later date. It was significantly warmer than yesterday and she began to feel sweat drip down the sway of her lower back. Gwen looked at her once soft hands now covered in oozing blisters from long hours of scraping with the knife. She shuttered at the idea of picked up the tool for hours more of grueling monotonous work. Lily noticed the wounds and tore off a piece of brown fabric from the bottom of her skirt.

  “Here,” she said grabbing Gwen’s hands. Lily wrapped her raw hands in the fabric creating a sort of glove.

  “Thanks,” she answered. Lily nodded and they went to work. After several minutes of scraping, Gwen honestly asked, “Why do you love him?”

  “Why don’t you?” she replied not bothering to look up from her work. Gwen wondered the same thing.

  “I…I’m not sure if I do.” Gwen hesitantly answered.

  Lily stopped and looked at Gwen. “You have to.”

  “I don’t have to do anything, and I most certainly do not have to love someone.”

  “Oh you stupid girl. You don’t even know what you have. I’d do anything, anything to make him love me the way…he loves you.” Gwen was offended, but as she heard the passion in Lily’s voice, she suddenly felt bad for her. She felt guilty. “It won’t work you know,” she said shaking her head getting back to her work. “It will never wo
rk.”

  Gwen wasn’t sure they were on the same page. “What won’t?”

  “I saw the way he looked at you. They way my brother touched you. Don’t begin to think it could ever work. I wouldn’t let anyone see you two like that either.” Lily said thin black eyebrow raised.

  Was it obvious? Was it true? Did she really have feelings for Andrew? She wasn’t sure…or at least she didn’t want to be.

  “There’s nothing going on between us. It’s just intense here, you know?” Gwen lied to herself.

  “Remember that,” Lily snipped as she walked away.

  Andrew. Pete. It was all a mess. Gwen couldn’t tell reality from fantasy anymore. All she knew was she wanted, needed, to get out of there and get back the lives she had taken. There would be time for sorting feelings out.

  Ugh, Andrew. She tried to block him from her mind as she worked. Every time she tried she saw his face. His dark eyes peering longingly into hers through the steel fence. His large hand cupping her blush and ivory cheek every so softly. The way he could barely stand from all the hours of attempted survival and mind control keeping her from feeling the pain. She knew him from the inside. She’d visited his mind and he had visited hers. Shaking her head she tried to concentrate on something, anything else, it was no use. The touch. It could very well be the only time Gwen could ever feel Andrews touch on her soft skin again. The fucking collar. The thing that held her captive, in a way, gave her freedom. It enabled the touch. It enabled Gwen to turn down her ability by a thousand…hopefully enough to spare Tiger’s life. Yes, she hated it…but she respected it.

  The thought of the collar reminded her of Nana. How she missed her big fluffy friend. Gwen wondered if the poor dog was alright. If anyone remembered to feed her, let her out, throw her big red ball and give her a nightly walk around the block. No, she figured. Nana would be lucky to be fed. Her mother. She wondered if by now her mother knew of her whereabouts…if she numbed herself with pills of all sizes. If her father had any clue. She hoped her brothers were holding up…she hoped they were ok.