The House of Death

Chapter 7

Melanie watched as Mara and Clarice fought furiously with their blades, metal clanging against metal. She flinched every time Mara was pushed back by Clarice. Mara flung herself over Clarice's head, back arched, and the blade tore the cloth of the cloak.

She landed on her feet behind Clarice and stood immediately to meet her dual blades with Clarice's. The blades clanged painfully and Mara grunted with force as she shoved Clarice backwards roughly. She staggered but found her footing soon and lunged. As they fought, blades almost cutting skin, Mara said through gritted teeth, 'Try and find something sharp! Anything! Glass, knives,'-she grunts as she slides to avoid one end and pressed her stomach in to avoid the other-'anything! Try to stay in the circle as much as you can!'

Melanie noticed Mara's forehead slightly dripped with sweat from the exertion. Clarice however, even though the mask covered her face she could see, was grinning with delight. As their blades locked, Mara pushing, she said, humor dripping extravagantly. 'Tired already? Haven't you practiced?' She slashed and cut Mara's skin.

Mara flinched as she looked at the cut. Under the tear of the cloth, a long red line oozed little blood from the wound.

Melanie looked around for something sharp. She found glass shards on the floor but they were too close to the feet of the clusters of woman. The largest pieces of glass were near the wall behind them, and reduced in size as it lay haphazardly till they were the size of rice morsels near her feet.

She looked to the faces of the women. They had arrows at the ready but their bows were lowered, frowning in concentration, not seeming to take interest in Melanie, a 'mortal', as Clarice called her.

She could take this to her advantage, she thought. They were watching the fight in earnest, and they stood as though they were in groups, leaving some gap between them that Melanie could squeeze through without touching the arms of any one.

She bent down to avoid any attention, and walked on her haunches, looking back to the fight, then the clusters of women every now and then. She reached in front of the gap between two groups and slightly stood, her back still bent.

She looked up to see if the women noticed her, but they didn't. She almost grinned at her luck. Melanie stood up hesitantly, ever so slowly, and looked at the women in alarm. She looked back to the fight. She inwardly gasped in horror.

Mara was on the floor in a crouch, her head down, holding herself up by her hands. She shook as she took shaky breaths, harsh scars on her arms. Her short hair covered her expression, but Melanie could see a rough scar ever so close to her eye.

Clarice stood a few feet away, breathing deeply, evening out her breaths. Her eyes gleamed with victory as she looked down at Mara on the floor.

Melanie looked back before someone's concentration would be diverted towards her. She walked sideways, avoiding the arms and legs and passed the rows of women. She almost grazed her arm on a dual blade as she tried to rush to get to the wall.

She crouched down and searched, hoping to find a sharp piece of glass. Finally, she found piece of glass that was roughly in the shape of a droplet. She clutched it in her hand and she crawled back to the front. Then she ran to the center of the circle.

This time, they noticed. A woman with amber eyes and dark skin standing on the far end of the room, yelled, 'Get her before she draws her location!'

Draw my location? She thought. Then she heard Mara's voice in her head. Listen to my voice, she said. It was calm and did not match her physical state, which was tired and worn.

Scratch the sharp end for drawing. Melanie bent down and scratched the floor. The shard of glass reformed into a point extremely sharp. A perfect line was scratched on the floor.

Draw as I speak. Listen carefully. She listened, the sharp end of the glass pointed to the floor at the ready. From the corner of her eye, she could see the women moving back and forth, confused as to who should grab at her.

The woman with amber eyes groaned in frustration. Clarice was angering Mara with snide and arrogant remarks. Mara shook with anger. Then suddenly, she roared and pounced. They tumbled to the ground, protecting their neck with their blades.

The amber eyed woman was trying to bypass them but struggled. Clock. Melanie drew a rough clock without arms. Square around circle. She drew. Big rectangle. She drew a rectangle vertically with the top breadth close to the clock and the bottom breadth far down. Triangle on top.

She drew. Now Melanie could see what Mara was trying to say. She glanced up and feverishly looked down in haste to finish. She felt searing pain and trickling blood as she clutched the glass tighter too control the struggled shaking of her hand as she tried to hold the large piece.

Melanie drew rough lines to signify the detail of the Ben Clock Tower. Then, as she placed the piece of glass on the ground and stood up, she was grabbed by the arms from behind. Someone kicked their knee into her back and she fell on her knees, arms held behind her.

Great job. Don't worry. We're leaving, Mara said in Melanie's head. Someone hastily tried to smudge the drawing on the floor but it was no use.

'Mel! Catch!' Mara yelled. Then Melanie caught a glint of white fly towards her. And she did something drastic. Somehow, she got one arm free from the grasp of the person holding her and twisted. She elbowed the woman's face and kicked her in the stomach. At just the right time, she caught the glint of white. It was a pearl.

'Throw it on the ground!' Melanie looked to Mara, held down by Clarice trying to slit her throat, only to be blocked by the metal of Mara's dual blades, the only thing keeping her between survival, and death.

Melanie threw the pearl on the ground hard, and a bright light erupted just where she threw it on the ground. She shut her eyes tight at the sudden brightness as she heard a grunt and a horrible bone crack as she saw Mara lunge at her.

She grabbed Melanie's arm and the last thing she saw was Clarice's wild eyes as she tried to grab at Melanie's leg to stop them, only to fail.

She was in a tunnel of purple aura spinning around her and she fell unconscious. Dark spots filled her vision and she fainted.