Avatar Rose: Dusk

Chapter 57: Rose

I'm hooked on a feeling
I'm high on believing
That you're in love with me...

The music blasts in my ears as they slip a gag and blindfold on me. I guess they were a bit short on earplugs, they stuffed earbuds into my ears instead. Figures. I won't be able to sense any details on the roads we're zooming down.

After realizing I don't have a chance to escape until we get out of the van, I attempt to forget where I am and listen to the music.

I can't stop this feeling
Deep inside of me
Girl, you just don't realize
What you do to me

Suddenly, I'm jerked against my chains. My wrists are already bloody from straining, so when they dig farther into the skin I wince. I don't know what's happening. I know that the van most likely wrecked, but how?

Am I being rescued?

The hope quickly flutters away when my duct tape and blind fold is yanked off, revealing a sickly pale, creepy man in front of me.

He puts a rag over my mouth and nose, knocking me out with some kind of drug sprayed on to it. Did I just get kidnapped twice in one day?

When I wake up, I feel cold metal wrapped around my arm and legs, holding me in place to a chair. The ghostly pale man stands in front of me.

He grabs my chin, a terrifying grin spreading across his gaunt face as he stares into my fiery eyes. "So exotic... oh, lucky me!"

I squint at him, grimacing. "What?"

He just laughs, then turns all the lights on so I can see more clearly. My eyes widen. Three other girls sit curled up in cages, trembling and terrified. But there's another one, her hands chained upwards on to the ceiling. She stands on a stool so she's able to actually stand without swinging back and forth on her chains.

"Liesel?" I squeak out in dismay. She sobs into her gag, those lively gray eyes of hers wide with horror.

I heard briefly about some serial killer in the newspaper, but never thought anything of it. Well, until now, of course.

"Oh? Is this one a friend of yours? I'm about to skillfully dissect this girl, so watch carefully now," he says in a voice that's calm, which makes it twice as scary.

I struggle desperately. "Stop! Wh- why are you doing this!?"

This makes him pause for a moment, almost as if the question baffles him. As if it isn't obvious why he's doing it.

"Well now, because I enjoy it, I suppose. Women just cut up so nicely, you know? It has become rather of a habit of mine."

The chains around my arm are loose enough where I'd be able to bend all of the metal off. But I keep him talking, saving some time for Liesel and I.

"How can a person kill another for a reason like that!?" I yell angrily.

His eyes twitch, and they grow small and bead like. He begins to walk towards me, I struggle even harder now, terrified of this guy.

"Oh, but they can! Given the slightest opportunity, a person can kill another."

"S- stay back!" I yelp.

He continues, stopping in front of me with a butcher knife in hand. "It's even easier for people to kill each other in war. Why do you suppose that is?"

I practically shrink away, staring at the floor. "I- I don't know."

He sinks the butcher knife into my left shoulder, making me cry out and Liesel to scream into her gag. I feel the blood trickle down my arm and splatter on to the cement floor. 

His face is inches from mine now. "Because people want to kill each other," he hisses into my ear.

"Son of a bitch!" I scream as I get the chains off with metal bending. His face twists into the most horrifying scowl I've ever seen in my life.

He swings his weapon, but I swiftly slip out of reach. Another swing, but this time, I hold the knife in place with my boot. Luckily, it's with my metal leg. He attempts to grab my shoulder, but I bite his hand so hard that blood seeps through the teeth marks. He stares at his bite mark for a moment, seemingly fascinated with the blood coming from it.

I make a break for Liesel, but he tackles me, cackling maniacally. I kick some air with my feet, making him topple off of me. I spot a knife a few feet away.

We're so dead!

He's standing now, near enough to where he's towering over me as I try to crawl to the knife. He skillfully swipes, sending semi deep cuts ripping through my left arm. It pours blood.

My hand grips on to the knife. Another swipe to my cheek. I feel the crimson liquid stream down. He's about to finish me off.

I let out a yell, clenching my eyes closed as I plunge the knife into the serial killer's chest.

He falls, but pulls the knife into his chest even more so he's closer to me. He's grinning and laughing, making another deep cut on my forearm. I'm screaming through gritted teeth now, vision blurry with tears. I twist the knife and yank it out. The man is dead in seconds.

I lie on my back for a few minutes, shocked and trembling. But I do eventually get up and free Liesel. She's uninjured, but looks scarred. I leave her to free the other girls, who cower away from me murmuring things like "monster" and "dangerous avatar."

I walk out of the cement block building and trudge to an alley where I hide. A rainstorm begins, but I don't move. I sit there drenched and curled up into a little ball.

After about an hour I hear Nathan and the others calling my name. I ignore them, but Nathan does eventually find me. I attempt to wipe the blood off my face, but only smear more on it from the fresh blood on my hand. My wounds still bleed fairly heavily.

"Go away," I murmur. He rushes to me frantically.

"Liesel told me what happened. Rose, those cuts look deep. Let me see them," he orders gently.

I shrink away. "I'm fine! Just leave me alone, please."

Nathan gets Rowan for help. They both try to coax me out of my little corner, but eventually have to drag me out. I'm too weak to resist.

Gwen gasps as she takes a look at my arm, which is cut up so badly that moving it even a little causes agony. I leave it limp at my side. Nobody asks about my bionic arm and what happened to that.

"Don't worry, I'm okay," I mumble with a dazed smile, which was supposed to be a reassuring one. I stumble as I sway on my feet, but push Nathan away as he tries to pick me up.