Survival

Skyrah

The night is here. Our biggest challenge so far. Our only chance; our only hope. I stand in the bathroom with my dress on. Last time I put a dress on I was giddy, excited for my date with the boy I liked, happy. Now I put on my dress, strapping a gun to my leg. Hiding, fighting, trying to be someone else. I am not a murderer. I am not a leader. I am a survivor, so that’s what I’m doing, surviving. I breathe out, looking at myself in the mirror. I still despise what I see, but someone else likes it, that’s something. The black dress flows down to the floor, the impenetrable bodice is surprisingly comfortable, my sister is a creative genius. My blonde hair hangs down in loose waves. My masquerade mask covers my most noticeable features. I take it off and set it down on the desk in front of me, breathing carefully, trying to steady my breaths. I walk into the bedroom and Alaric is facing the door, I stand there smiling.

“Hi” I say quietly. Alaric spins around and smiles, his crooked, charming smile. He looks at me, his eyes fixed in one place, my face. I’ve realised that when I came out on the night my life changed, Blade’s eyes roamed my body, they didn’t rest on one place, he looked at me like I was an object, not a person. Alaric looks at me like there is no one else in the world, just me and him alone together.

“You look…” he starts “indescribable, words can’t describe how beautiful you look” he finishes and rushes forward, his lips crashing into mine, we are immortal, in mind if not in body.

“You look very dapper” I say after the kiss breaks. Love. I fell in love without realising, it came naturally, just like breathing, you don’t consciously think about it until you actually try.

“Why thank you my lady” he says taking a bow.

“Are you nervous?” he asks, I take a moment to think.

“I wouldn’t say I’m nervous, I’m scared, if they find us we are going to die and I don’t know if I can face that without saving this city” I say, my voice laced with dread. Death is a peculiar and terrifying thought. I’d like to think that there is something after death because it is too frightening to think that everything just ends and goes black. I believe that the human race is too complex for everything to just stop, there has to be something after because if there isn’t, what is the point in living?

Death is inevitable; we can prolong it but one day the death doctor will come and suck the life out of you and you can’t stop it, no one can stop it. The death doctor is an urban myth of sorts, they say that when you are in your last moments a man with a wasted face and pure black eyes dressed in a black robe with a white cross on it comes to you, hold your face and breaths in the last drops of your life so that he is immortal, he takes your life to avoid death, to avoid himself and he will take it from anyone, he doesn’t care, he doesn’t value life. Doctor now has a new meaning to me, my mother is a doctor, but she isn’t saving people, she is killing them. My mother is the death doctor. Alaric nods. We aren’t ready for the death doctor. I will not let him claim us, I will fight. I pick up the masquerade mask and tie it up, shielding my face; Alaric puts his mask on and we walk out hand in hand.

We arrive at the hall that holds the banquet. Emory speaks,

“Are you guys ready?”

“As ready as we will ever be” I say and climb out of the car. I hug Emory’s parents and say goodbye. We walk into the hall. A long dark wooden table stretches out from one end of the hall to the other, matching chairs are tucked into the table. Everyone is walking around greeting people. Waiting staff walk around with trays of little pastries and glasses of a bubbly liquid. We stand in a row, we all take a deep breath almost simultaneously. I take a step forward and whisper to them.

“Okay, Raine flirts with Blade and takes him outside, he is an idiot so he will believe you, I will follow them outside, and I will beat him up, steal the keys, Raine will then come inside, bump into a waiter making them spill their tray, she will then shout for help, that is the signal for us to go, while we are dealing with Blade we need important people to be distracted” I say proud with the plan “Emory, you will be distracting my mother, Aster, you will be distracting Blade’s father and Rick, you have to talk to Layla, okay, let’s go” I say and we all split up. I stand in the corner waiting for Raine to lead Blade outside, I see the rest of them approach their targets but I focus on Raine. I stare at them intently, studying them, she touches his arm and laughs, and she bites her lip and bends her arms back slightly to show off her assets. I hear a voice and I focus again. I look up and see a tall man standing there, I would say he is in his mid-twenties and he is muscular and very good looking.

“Hi” he says “Wesley Carter, and you are?” his voice is sophisticated and deep.

“Elena Alvarez” I say extending my hand, he shakes it and kisses the back of it.

“I’ve never heard that name before, I know everyone, and I consider myself to be a socialite” he says laughing.

“Well it appears that you aren’t Mr Carter” I say quietly.

“Hmm, well we might just have to change that” he says coming closer, almost cornering me in.

“What is it that you do for a living here?” I ask, I need to know whether I need to fear him or trust him.

“I work with the government, I actually organised this event” he says proudly motioning to the table and all the people.

“Well Mr Carter, if you ever find yourself questioning your life choices don’t hesitate to contact me” I say and walk away, Blade and Raine left a few minutes ago.

“What does that mean?” Wesley calls.

“Use your brain Mr Carter” I call back and exit through the double doors, I walk down the alley that should hold Blade and Raine. I see Raine pressed against the wall kissing Blade. I roll my eyes and let out a sound of disgust.

“Seriously Raven” I say using her fake name. “You weren’t meant to make out with him”

She pushes Blade off of her and wipes her mouth “sorry” she says giggling. I push her behind me and walk up to Blade, his eyebrows furrowed with confusion.

“Blade, Blade, Blade, don’t you wish you had treated me properly” I say wandering around him in a circle.

“What-I- I don’t even know who you are?” he says in his deep voice that once made me weak at the knees.

“And my identity will remain a mystery, but you hurt me Blade, and you are going to pay for it, you really don’t learn your lesson do you?” I laugh.

“What do you mean?” he says, I notice his hands are clenched into fists.

“You have a girlfriend, but here you are, out here kissing another girl, I would tell you girlfriend but I hate her too, so I want her to suffer” I say stopping in front of him.

“Now we can do this the easy way or the hard way, give me the keys to the town hall” I say holding my hand out.

“No way” he says like a child, with a look of distaste, he turns to walk away.

“The hard way” I say evenly. I lunge forward and spin him around, my fist slams into his face and he winces. I didn’t defeat him before but this time I will. He pulls his arm back and propels his fist forward, I dodge it and he stumbles forward slightly. I grab his shoulders and knee him in the stomach, he gasps and kicks his leg out as I step back, hitting me in the stomach. I feel a sharp stab of pain in my stomach but I pull myself back up. Then I remember. He was shot. I duck and run behind. I pull his tuxedo jacket off and see a red mark on his left arm. Before I can act he punches me in the jaw and I fall, my jaw aches and it is like my face is being stabbed with white hot needles. I drag myself up and punch the red patch on his arm, he screams and falls, I take the opportunity to pin him down. I press my hand onto the wound a squeeze it, he screams and begs me to stop.

“Skyrah stop” he pleads “I’m sorry, I’m sorry”

He knows it’s me because I’m the only one apart from Layla that knows he got shot.

“Raine go get something to tie him up with” I say and she runs off, moments later she comes back with a metal rope. I pull Blade up and make him walk down the alley a little more, I make him sit behind a dumpster. I find the keys in his shirt pocket, I then wrap him in the rope and tie it to a pipe attached to the building. Raine hands me a strip of tape and I place it over his mouth.

I say “Thanks for your cooperation Blade” and walk away. We have the keys. Part one is over. Now we need to get into the town hall without being caught and steal the files, assuming that they exist. I hope to God that they do.