A Hymn of Snakes

SEVEN

WARNING SPICY CONTENT

There is a crow sitting on a tree, my eyes fanned down in the bliss of cold as my breath escaped from the form of my mouth. I didn't dare blink but my eyes wouldn't dry. Standing in a graveyard as the stones looked up at me, my mother's headstone was first.

Danielle Delaune. November 10th, 1975 - June 25, 2007. Her death marker was a snake coiled in the Keeper sigil, it would take seconds to rip it off and throw it into the dirt. I hated seeing that symbol scorn her grave, her flowers were dead and it made me miss visiting her.

I shoveled my feet against the snow as I moved to the next grave. My throat closed at the sight of it.

Cole Castor.

My eyes drew up around the graveyard, Cole's death was in Seattle and my mother was buried in Chicago. Taking another step I saw another name, Maggie Ivanov. I swallowed harshly, my shadows were no where to be heard as I continued down the line. Prisha Kumar. My heart hammered in my chest, so loud you could hear it around the graveyard. Then the next tombstone, Sabien Whitley, I didn't think twice before going to the next one- Nelo Leonar. Then the next, Clarice Danes. I stopped before the last grave- it was open without a casket inside.

Alphonse Corriveau.

A screech so power shook the Earth, my face turned to see the Lost was flying overhead. His wings brought up with his hands as he squared at me, I reached for my blade but nothing was there. My nightmares always left me without a weapon. He opened his talons to me as his body slammed into me, I yelled from the top of my lungs as he pushed me into his open grave.

Falling as I tried to grab for something but the darkness wrapped his arms around me, then the scene of my dream changed.

The Lost was gone and now I was sitting at a table, across from me was Alphonse Corriveau- but he wasn't Lost at all. A simple Vampire. "I never wanted this for myself," His voice croaked as he flashed me his fangs but I refused to move away. "She promised us a new age, a place where we wouldn't have to hide from Keepers and a place where we could be Vampires freely." He told me, probably speaking about Natalia. I closed my mouth to a thin line, "She made us give her our blood to prove our loyalty, I didn't know... I didn't know she'd turn us into this. I would take it back if I could. My wife probably thinks I left her." He looked no more than a man on his way to redemption.

"She cursed you, I've seen it before. She did it to Prisha, Sabien, and Nelo." I confessed, he nodded in a reply. Him and I talked his lip quivered. "You didn't know, that's not your fault. I didn't realize she had the help of witches, if I knew who they were then I might be able to stop them from cursing anyone else. None of you deserve to be turned into weapons, you are people before puppets. Are you dead?" I asked him, knowing the Lost downstairs was still alive but his human mind might be lost forever.

Alphonse swallowed his fear, already dead to know that he would soon meet a fate of ashes. He chewed on his lip as he looked up at me again, "No, there is no bringing me back- you know that. I simply came here because the darkness invited me. You're feared you know." He told me and I nodded, I didn't want to be reminded of how they envisioned me. I had to deal with the temperament everyday now, I wished I was allowed silence. "The Judas Witch, word traveled that you're alive and the Vampires in Natalia's court fear you. The witches too, one of them- an Oracle spoke of you to us. Said unless you died then we'd all be dead." He said, trailing his nail across his hand as the darkness slowly began to wrap its away around his neck. We wouldn't have long to speak.

I opened my mouth to speak but I didn't know if I wanted to know. "What else did she say?" I asked.

The echoing of his words were left behind as Alphonse died and left me alone in the darkness, my hands in fists as I looked to the ground. "That you are death and all that life should fear." I no longer wanted to be asleep, I wanted this nightmare to end.