The Queen Of Death and Ruins

The Shadows Within

The red ruby glistened under the dim alley lights.

The creatures shrieked.    

The laughter rang in my ears. 

The dagger pierced through my heart.

I rubbed my chest with my fist as I Zephyr  from my bed, the phantom pain unleashing a tidal wave of barely suppressed emotions and unanswered questions. I glanced at my phone, the bright light momentarily blinding me, and I knew that sleep was a lost cause now that it was four in the morning. My room was engulfed in silence, the only sound in my ears was the loud and frantic beating of my heart.

A miserable sigh escaped my lips. To say I was getting sick and tired of this nightmare would be a laughable understatement.

I took several deep breaths and waited for the ache in my chest to disperse. When my heartbeat slowed, I silently opened my door and snuck down to the kitchen. Leaving my slippers behind, I held on to the railings and tiptoed on the marble staircase, trying so hard not to wake my parents up again. The nightmare made them worry a lot and so as time went by I had stopped sharing my horrific night visions with them. My mother would sometimes find me in the kitchen —no matter how silent I tried to be— and I would pretend to be getting a midnight snack, assuring her that everything was fine and that she should go back to sleep. 

Everything was far from fine, of course, but there was no need to ruin her nights as well.

Without turning the lights on, I crept up to the cabinets and grabbed a mug. I couldn't remember a time when I had slept through the night, and as I warmed up some milk, movements laggy and slow with exhaustion, I wondered if I ever would. When the hot chocolate was ready, I jumped on the counter and tucked my legs under me, savoring my drink.

The silence of the house was a stark contrast to the loud events of my night terrors, and it provided no distractions to my over-active brain. I didn't want to think about what I saw, but with nothing except the hot mug to occupy me, my mind was flooded with images of daggers and rubies, making my stomach twist.

I snapped out of my memories after who knows how long, only to realize that the hot drink had gotten cold in my hands. The mug was still half full, and as I jumped off the counter, I debated whether or not I should reheat it, when my ankle twisted under me and the mug went crashing into the marble floor. 

"For fuck's sake!" 

I grabbed the small trash can from under the sink and got down on my knees, collecting the broken ceramic that had scattered everywhere and cursing every piece as I shoved it in. Yanking the dishrag from its place on the sink, I went to mop up the mess before stopping dead in my tracks. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something move.

"What the hell?” I whispered, my eyes roaming around the dark kitchen. Everything was still as I inspected every corner, the only sound that disrupted the peace was my ragged breath and the beating of my heart. After a few seconds, I shook my head, going back to clean up my mess. 

"Shit." 

I scrambled back, watching with bated breath as the shadows around me morphed into a humanoid shape. The kitchen seemed to get even darker, the air thick and stale as it made its way through my lungs. My throat was dry, a painful lump lodged in it, preventing me from screaming for help. The shadows blinked in and out of existence, and I could have sworn they were getting closer every time I blinked. 

Within them, a red stone glistened through the dark.

"What happened here?"

"Mom!"