Bound by the Devil

Chapter 2: The Sacrificing

"Raya?" A soft voice, comforting and full of care, my mum's voice. A small groan escaped my lips. My eyes fluttered opened to bright light.

"Where am I?"

"Oh darling!" My mum let out a sigh of relief, "you're okay! After you went for you jog, you didn't return for ages and I went out looking for you and found you passed out on the ground at the park"

"Huh," I sat up in my bed, "I fainted?"

"Yes darling, how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine," I let out a small smile.

My mum got up from the chair next to me and went down to the kitchen to grab me some dinner. I had been passed out for more than half the day; the sun had already set outside. I grabbed my blanket by the cover and tugged it closer to my chest. Then all of the memories from the morning started trickling back. That man, the strange pale man. He whispered strange things. Maybe I'm going to die soon, and that's the grim reaper that's coming after me.

Then I remembered the news flash this morning. The weird grave site that I had also visited before in my dream in that suburb far away. I grabbed my laptop and did a quick search.

-Gravesite Healesville covered in crosses-

I scrolled through the webpage when something caught my eye. '1000-year-old gravesite belonging to Marcelo Amaros'. I took a deep breath and clicked on the link, and a picture popped up. The exact same one that was in my dream the other day. It was exactly the same, covered in small crosses and was a giant mound of dirt.

According to this article, this was 1000 grave belonging to this man who was buried alive for being in possession of dark magic. Silver crosses were believed to be placed around his grave to trap him and his spirit in his coffin and this was done by the most powerful priests alive in that century.

Not going to lie I was in a bit of panic. Vague visions of my knocking over the gravesite and knocking the crosses of flashed in my head. But that was a dream, and ghosts or weird things like this doesn't exist, well it only exists in books and movies. I closed my laptop and walked over to the bathroom.

In my head the strange mans voice kept ringing in my head. Was I delusional. I mean I did binge watch the whole Twilight series a couple of nights ago, maybe my dreams were conjuring up some weird pale vampire dude in my subconscious. Nevertheless, I had to get out of this daze, I had classes tomorrow and I had to get my study mode on.

Slowly turning the tap on, I let the gushing sound of the warm water fill the bathroom. Heaping a handful of it into my hand I splashed it onto my face, felt so calming. Then I felt something on my neck, I looked up at my reflection and saw a black worm crawling on my neck.

ARRGHHHH! I screamed, as I tripped over my feet, flailing my hands in the air and fell butt first onto the bathroom tiles.

That's going to hurt – snickered an all to familiar voice.

My breath hitched up in my throat and I backed up quickly against the wall, my eyes darting all around the bathroom.

"Get out!" I said weakly.

What? Am I not allowed to check on my saviour? – crooned the voice, and suddenly at the moment the lights started dimming away and a misty shadow started forming in front of my eyes. My brain wasn't functioning anymore at this point, I didn't even think to get up and run out.

"Who-what do you want?" I stuttered nervously.

Nothing, I'm just checking on you, out of the kindness of my heart. – and as I heard that he appeared in full form in front of me, out of the shadow. Dressed in a black suit, his tall, lean body hovering over me. Under the dim lights I could still pick out the pale skin and black beady eyes. He had his hands crossed behind him and took two steps forward. The heels of his shoes making a subtle clicking sound. His proximity to me, meant I could whiff a smokey, burning scent of him. Similar to something you'd smell if there was something burning in a fire. I quickly lowered my gaze and stared down at the floor.

"What do you want?" I repeated sternly, trying to hide the fear in my voice.

He let out a cackle that echoed across the room. I don't think you want to give me what I want. He sneered.

"Then get out!"

I can't until I get what I want.

"Then tell me what you want," I thought about getting on all fours and crawling out of the room without looking back, but I was to scared to even budge, "my mum's downstairs, if I scream, she'll call the cops. Just leave!"

If you scream, your mother will no longer have a daughter – as he said this a shiver ran down my spine and it felt like the room temperature plunged into an icy chill.

I saw his shadow shift and he crouched down, and he was now sitting eye level with me. I shut my eyes tightly, refusing to believe this was even happening.

Darl – he snarled; you can't sit in darkness forever.

Then everything went silent. Thinking he was gone I slowly opened my eyes, only to be met with a set of beady soulless eyes staring back at me. The corner of his lips twitched into a crooked sneer. Shit he was still here.

"Please," I whimpered, "go away"

What I want is this – as he spoke, he pointed to me.

"Me?" I whispered.

Well, technically speaking, I need you to hand me over your life.

Confusion, fear and anxiety crossed my face.

'Don't be confused' – as if though he read my thoughts he said calmly, 'Let me put it simply, you must die'.

"What......"

'But not today. On your 21st birthday. I will come to take your soul. Until then enjoy your last moments.'

With that he evaporated into thin air. And I was sitting there in the corner of the bathroom struck with every emotion possible.

Days, months and days finally go by and it's the night before my 20th birthday. Everything that had happened with the creepy guy I put it as me being delusional, even though I was still slightly on edge about it. I didn't tell anyone, even my best friends. The clock strikes 12. A new day and an older me. My phone fires up with birthday wishes, and I quickly text back my thank you with a smile across my face. In that moment I forget every hardship I had faced and just enjoy the early hours of my birthday.

But, that happiness only lasted for a few moments, as suddenly a gush of an all too familiar scent filled up my room. The ashy odour and the flickering room lights, an all too familiar situation, that I had suppressed in my memories.

'Oh I've missed you' – scorned the voice, the words encasing my head like a velvety blanket as the tall dark, shadowy figure came into formation in front of my eyes.