My Kidnapper Compares Me To Bottom Feeders

(26) Danny

Waking up was probably the worst part of the day. It had to be done every morning, and even more if you took a nap. No matter what, you had to wake up, and no matter what, it was hell every time. I opened my eyes a sliver and made out a milky gray light filtering in from the curtains.

The annoyance started to set in. Waking up was made even worse by a horrible, rainy day. At least pigeons didn't plague the streets in the rain. With that kind of positive thought, I slowly became aware of my surroundings.

I was wrapped around Vollieri's arm and had one of my knees hooked under his. He slept like the dead, I had no idea how comfortable this position was to him. I was very content, but waking up had to be done one day.

My heart dropped and a burst of adrenaline shook the sleep right out of me. There was a figure hovering in the air over the bed. Everything about it looked like a kind of shady guy, one you would avoid on the street, except for his hands and the WINGS POPPING OUT OF HIS BACK.

I squeezed Vollieri's bicep so hard it was a wonder he didn't wake up swinging. The creature's hands were stumps of bark-like flesh and ended in long, claws of dripping black sap. The wings flapped up and down slowly, and so quietly I could hardly hear them. They were made of bark and had pinpricks of black oozing out of the flesh occasionally.

I gasped sharply at the curved knife it was holding in one hand, posed to strike. The blade was long and thin, a pale green metal. It jerked its head toward me.

The creatures mouth was a blood-red gash on his face with a full set of ebony teeth. Its eyes were pitch black orbs, no pupil or anything. This thing looked like it had risen straight out of hell.

With barely a thought, I snatched the first thing I could grab off the nightstand and chucked it at it. It ended up being the bag of rice with my phone in it and it broke against the creature's jaw, after pushing him back a couple feet.

Rice spilled everywhere and Vollieri shot up with the sound of the creature's inhuman growl. I squeaked and dug my nails in his arm. "What the fuck is that?"

It fell to the floor and started picking up the grains of rice, saying some sort of chant or something. "What is it doing..?"

"It's counting..." Vollieri mumbled, he was blocking me from seeing it so I peeked over his shoulder. "It's a faerie," he said in bemusement.

"Why is it counting?"

"It must be cursed," Vollieri decided, amusement in his tone.

"Cursed to count?" What the hell?

I pushed myself away from Vollieri and peered over the side of the bed. The sight I saw was the saddest, most painful thing. "My phone..." I groaned. It was in the corner, the screen completely shattered. There was no saving that one.

Vollieri stood up and gave me a look. "Daniel, you should move," he warned as he reached toward me and I slapped his hand away.

"How did that thing get in here?" I demanded.

His nostril's flaired and he glared at the faerie, still counting rice in the corner. "...I've noticed something strange, a smell of odd magic, but I thought it was just the remnants of the faerie realm on you."

"You smelled weird magic on me and you didn't tell me? That thing was about to butcher you into pieces! And maybe even me!"

"I wouldn't let you get hurt," Vollieri promised me.

I sighed and watched as his eyes glazed over. They were cold and emotionless all of a sudden. Fear crept into me. "Vol-"

A scorching pain tore across my chest. I cried out and looked down at the gnarled bark of the faerie's claws as they tore into me. Blood spurted over the claws, down my shirt. I was lost in an abyss of pain as my shoulders popped.