Nymphix

Chapter Sixteen

"You just don't die, do you?"

Kat tried to open her eyes, but they were so heavy, and it took so much energy that she kept them shut. The bands around her wrist and around her neck were leeching the very last remains of her magic away. They had been there for what felt like years, and just when she thought the last of her magic was gone and that she would go to sleep for the last time, she would wake up. 

He didn't even beat her anymore, he simply walked in, asked the questions then walked out. The bands at her wrists were no longer the metal bracelets, but instead symbols that thad been etched in with a cursed blade, "a more advanced version" he had said, "to keep you alive. But only barely."

She was so tired, but there was the smallest amount of fight left in her. Where it came from she had no idea, but this pit of anger kept waking her up every time she blacked out. Other people had come and gone, she could hear their dying screams echoing around the room, but for some reason they kept her alive. It made no sense because she had given them absolutely nothing, in fact she had nothing to give. They knew more about her magic than she did. 

* * *

The crash that sounded shattered Kat's ear drums. It seemed she had never heard anything so loud in her life, but it was really because for weeks now she had been plunged into silence

"GO!" A voice barked out and suddenly there were people in the room and light shining on the floor that burned Kat's eyes. 

"Are you okay? Can you hear me?" A voice spoke beside her, but she couldn't lift her head. She opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a croak. 

"She's not responding!" The voice beside her yelled out, and she flinched at the sound of it. 

"Wait!" The voice called again as they saw Kat flinch. A hand reached under her chin and lifted her head for her, brushing oily clumped strands of her hair out of her face. 

"Can you speak? I need to know if you can hear me" It was a male's voice, and a males face. The details of his face were blurred as Kat's vision blurred and unfocused. 

"Yes" She managed to croak out. 

"Can you stand? We're getting you out of here" 

"My hands" Kat manage to croak out again, and as the boy took his hand away her head fell so hard she though it would fall off. 

"I need light!" He called out and a small fire appeared next to him. He swore foully as he saw the spell etched into her wrists. 

"I-I don't know what to do. How do I break the spell" He looked into Kat's eyes, desperately pleading for some sort of answer, and Kat bit her lip as if stopping the answer from tumbling out. 

"You have to break the symbols" Another voice said from beside them.

"What do you mean? Break the what?" 

A small knife appeared and grabbed her hand

"We have to move fast, we don't know how much more time we'll have."

The figure with the knife crouched beside her and whispered an apology before slicing through each symbol with deft movements. If Kat had the energy she would have screamed, but instead she sat limply and waited for the pain to end. 

The first boy was still swearing, but with a sharp look from the other figure, he too picked up a knife and started on her other wrist, apologising with every slice. When they finally finished, Kat was able to lift her head on her own, but that was all. 

"My neck" She whispered, but at the same time a loud crash sounded from outside the door. 

"Hurry up!" Someone screamed from outside

"We can't hold them off much longer"

"My neck" Kat spoke louder this time as they reached to help her up. Brushing her hair back, the boy stepped back when he saw. 

"It's..." The second figure began to speak but stopped themselves and began cutting again. 

Kat counted 23 symbols that had to be broken until she could move her arms. 

"It's done. We need to move now." Kat moved to plant her feet more firmly on the ground in preparation to stand up, but just as she did she felt a sudden surge on magic enter her. To her right, the boy had grabbed her arm to help her up but as soon as he made contact she felt his magic flow into her. He jumped back as if he had been shocked and it had only happened for a second, but it was enough for Kat. The small tendrils of magic began to grow inside her, and she felt the age old anger that had lain dormant beginning to stir. 

"What happened?" the voice barked, and the boy tried to stutter out an answer, but Kat was growing stronger exponentially and before she knew it she was standing upright, the magic now flowing out of her arms and legs. She felt it's warmth and strength surrounding her like a shield and and it soon grew painful. It felt like her insides were expanding and her skin was stretching, ready to explode. A raw scream ripped out of her as her magic burst out, spilling out of every pore in her body, and soon two more screams joined her. 

Her eyes were squeezed shut but somehow images were racing across her eyelids so fast that as soon as she focused on one it was replaced by another. Her mother. Father. Lin. Her school. Her first spell, her first steps. Every agonising second spend in the dungeon, every voice and every question asked. The sadistic face that always returned with a new method of torture, a new knife or spell. It was burned into her retinas and all the images blurred into one until all she could see was a blinding white light. 

And then everything was silent again. 

Kat sat up and immediately lay back down as her head began throbbing, the memories felt out of place in her mind.

"Quite the show" A musical voice broke the silence in the room as Kat tentatively sat up again. A figure was laying in the bed across from her, but she couldn't see their face. 

"Sorry?" Kat called out as she pulled the covers off her and placed her feet on the floor, testing her balance. 

"The smoke, the screaming, that nurse you threw across the room, quite impressive" Kat stood up and spotted a dress lain out on the chair next to her - one of Lacey's from the look of it. Throwing it on, Kat immediately felt like a child wearing her mother dress - it hung off her frame pathetically, but she ignored it and walked over to the bed. 

The figure threw off the covers dramatically and sat up in the bed. Kat stepped back a little, taken aback by the girl - she was stunning. 

"I wouldn't know" Kat threw back "I was out for most of it."

"Well." The girl leaped out of bed and stood up "from my end it was brilliant." She had wavy white hair pulled into a ponytail and pale skin that seemed to glow with radiance. Her eyes were a piercing gold and they pinned Kat with a studying gaze. 

"You okay now?" She stepped forward and stared at Kat a little harder. Kat laughed humourlessly

"No" 

Celeste laughed at that and started walking towards the door before turning to look back at Kat

"You coming?"