Chapter 7
Arcadia
12•20•8993. 14:04.
Escape.
The guards are practically carrying me through the hallways as they force me to follow Jane. My feet barely brush the ground and almost no weight is put on them. I can feel Jane wriggling through my mind with her power, reading my thoughts.
I hate you.
"I'm sorry you feel that way, Arcadia-" she turns around and begins walking backwards, still avoiding the stone walls and taking every necessary turn, "-but I don't understand why." She puts on a look of false curiosity. She's taunting me.
I grimace from the pain in my wrists. The cuffs are not only digging into my skin, but taking away my power, just like my cell did. The temperature seems to be decreasing as we move farther from the cell. My skin feels as cold as I imagine Jane's heart to be, and I clench my jaw to keep my teeth from chattering. I haven't had a shower in days. My greasy hair looks more like thin ropes then human hair. I've tried to shake the strands from my face, but they insist on being attached to my skin and curling into my eyelashes and the corners of my lips.
"You kidnap me, refuse to tell me what you did to-" my voice breaks, "-Magnus, he could be-"
"Shut up, please." Jane slams my mouth shut, moving her hand as she would if playing with a puppet.
My mouth feels glued together and I let out a sigh through my nose.
Her back straightens slightly when we come across a new room.
I can feel its warmth from where I'm standing. Fancily carved wooden doors are before me, reaching high with their intricate fingers. Jane pushes the doors open with fervor, one with each hand, as if she's seeing her most prized possession again. Before me is a relatively small room, but the furnishings and colors make it look large. Shelves of books line the walls; some books open, some books upside down, some books torn and destroyed. A petite table is in the center of the room, also covered in disorganized stacks of paper. A single pen sits on the desk, the only thing appearing in order.
The guards shove me into the room and I land on my stomach and gasp as oxygen is forced out of my lungs. They leave quickly and close the doors behind them, and I stand, taking a moment to find my balance.
Jane and I are alone.
Jane releases her grip on my mind and the question I've wanted an answer to for weeks stumbles out through my teeth, "What do you want with me?"
She sits in a large black chair behind a desk on the right side of the room.
"I'd like for you to meet someone," Jane says, staring into my eyes as if looking for something.
"And I'd like to kill you. What's your point?" I tease condescendingly.
Jane smiles.
And keeps smiling.
Then she starts to laugh.
"I'm afraid that you don't understand how... hilarious... this truly is." she murmurs, grinning from ear to ear.
I stare into her emerald eyes threateningly, but worriedly, sensing that something bad is about to happen.
I hesitate before saying, "Whatever it is, show me."
"Sure thing." She grins. "Come in!"
I hear the doors open behind me but I don't dare to look. Quiet footsteps pass through the room and stop right behind me.
But there are two pairs of footsteps.
I feel myself shake in fear.
Is it Magnus? Kellen? Finnian?
"Why don't you take a look, Miss," says someone behind me. I don't recognize their voice.
I slowly turn and see two people. One is the female guard who helped carry me here.
The other is Jane, gagged and blindfolded.
I hold in a shriek and whip my head around towards the original Jane. Her body begins converting into something else. Her skin turns into scales, then the scales flip to reveal dark skin. She screams in pain, grabbing her skull. Her hair is sucked back into her scalp and sprouts again to reveal a long, straight, black ponytail. Her limbs extend, making her a foot taller. She blinks, and her grass-colored eyes turn into an inky black.
A low voice bounces through the room. Out of breath, the creature says five words.
"Nice to see you again," whispers Finnian.
12•20•8993. 14:04.
Escape.
The guards are practically carrying me through the hallways as they force me to follow Jane. My feet barely brush the ground and almost no weight is put on them. I can feel Jane wriggling through my mind with her power, reading my thoughts.
I hate you.
"I'm sorry you feel that way, Arcadia-" she turns around and begins walking backwards, still avoiding the stone walls and taking every necessary turn, "-but I don't understand why." She puts on a look of false curiosity. She's taunting me.
I grimace from the pain in my wrists. The cuffs are not only digging into my skin, but taking away my power, just like my cell did. The temperature seems to be decreasing as we move farther from the cell. My skin feels as cold as I imagine Jane's heart to be, and I clench my jaw to keep my teeth from chattering. I haven't had a shower in days. My greasy hair looks more like thin ropes then human hair. I've tried to shake the strands from my face, but they insist on being attached to my skin and curling into my eyelashes and the corners of my lips.
"You kidnap me, refuse to tell me what you did to-" my voice breaks, "-Magnus, he could be-"
"Shut up, please." Jane slams my mouth shut, moving her hand as she would if playing with a puppet.
My mouth feels glued together and I let out a sigh through my nose.
Her back straightens slightly when we come across a new room.
I can feel its warmth from where I'm standing. Fancily carved wooden doors are before me, reaching high with their intricate fingers. Jane pushes the doors open with fervor, one with each hand, as if she's seeing her most prized possession again. Before me is a relatively small room, but the furnishings and colors make it look large. Shelves of books line the walls; some books open, some books upside down, some books torn and destroyed. A petite table is in the center of the room, also covered in disorganized stacks of paper. A single pen sits on the desk, the only thing appearing in order.
The guards shove me into the room and I land on my stomach and gasp as oxygen is forced out of my lungs. They leave quickly and close the doors behind them, and I stand, taking a moment to find my balance.
Jane and I are alone.
Jane releases her grip on my mind and the question I've wanted an answer to for weeks stumbles out through my teeth, "What do you want with me?"
She sits in a large black chair behind a desk on the right side of the room.
"I'd like for you to meet someone," Jane says, staring into my eyes as if looking for something.
"And I'd like to kill you. What's your point?" I tease condescendingly.
Jane smiles.
And keeps smiling.
Then she starts to laugh.
"I'm afraid that you don't understand how... hilarious... this truly is." she murmurs, grinning from ear to ear.
I stare into her emerald eyes threateningly, but worriedly, sensing that something bad is about to happen.
I hesitate before saying, "Whatever it is, show me."
"Sure thing." She grins. "Come in!"
I hear the doors open behind me but I don't dare to look. Quiet footsteps pass through the room and stop right behind me.
But there are two pairs of footsteps.
I feel myself shake in fear.
Is it Magnus? Kellen? Finnian?
"Why don't you take a look, Miss," says someone behind me. I don't recognize their voice.
I slowly turn and see two people. One is the female guard who helped carry me here.
The other is Jane, gagged and blindfolded.
I hold in a shriek and whip my head around towards the original Jane. Her body begins converting into something else. Her skin turns into scales, then the scales flip to reveal dark skin. She screams in pain, grabbing her skull. Her hair is sucked back into her scalp and sprouts again to reveal a long, straight, black ponytail. Her limbs extend, making her a foot taller. She blinks, and her grass-colored eyes turn into an inky black.
A low voice bounces through the room. Out of breath, the creature says five words.
"Nice to see you again," whispers Finnian.
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