The Howling

Chapter Sixteen

        She was kept separate from the other children. The earth demon under Eisen's orders had constructed a rude prison to hold her. The earth had yawned open, jagged spears had shot up from the ground and rounded to create a dome barely large enough to contain her. She doubted she could stand without hitting the top of her head, but then, she still felt dizzy when she tried to move at all. 

        Her body throbbed achingly. Even moving an inch sent waves of pain shooting through her. She felt like a massive bruise, pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeat, each beat sending a fresh surge of agony through her.  

        Beyond the bars, she could see the circle of children being moved. The invisible wall which kept them contained had been dispelled, allowing the demons to round up the children. Strewn out on the ground, she had watched as her brother made a mad break for her. He had only run a few steps before the earth lurched under his feet and coils of mud shot up to wrap around his ankles as he tripped forward. They dragged him back to the group and the burly earth demon had thrown him over his shoulder like a burdensome sack as the other children were ushered through another opening. 

        Some of them were crying. Each child wore their terror on their face. Tear streaks stained the cheeks of the younger ones while the older children kept a brave face, gently pushing them forward when fear crippled their legs. More than a few children asked where they were being taken. 

        Villette knew. She had guessed while being tossed behind the crude bars. Ignatius must be the fire demon they were meeting. The one Eisen planned on making a contract with. The children were his price. That was why he had collected them, kept them in the prison. All so that they could be offered up when the time was ready. 

        But not her. Eisen had given her a contemptuous look before dissolving in a swirl of black smoke. His words to the other demons hung on the air even though he was gone. "Do with her what you please after my business is concluded." 

        That opened up a plethora of possibilities. She had thought about them, watching the children being marched off. Not that she cared. Without her brother, what else did she have to live for? 

        The last child marched through the opening. Then the wall began moving, the rocks shifting, until the opening had been filled in. The cavern was empty now. She hadn't noticed what Eisen and his demons had done with Al or Reinard. Nothing pleasant, she ventured. She hoped that they, at least, were still alive. 

        She tried to roll over, to get onto her knees, but her body screamed in protest. So she just lay there on her stomach instead, staring through the bars at the empty cavern. A stuffy silence descended. Every now and then, she heard a rock fall, hit another rock. For a moment, the sound would echo around the cave. It reminded her of when she taught Emil how to play marbles. The sound of marbles smacking against one another sounded the same as small rocks echoing in the vast cavern. 

        She had been so stupid. Did she really think that she, a human, would have been able to stand up against demons and magicians? She hadn't even known that they existed until a few days ago. Well, that wasn't strictly true, she corrected herself. She knew about the magicians. Not about the demons. 

        And now her little brother was to be sacrificed to one of them. His soul consumed by a demon of fire. And here she was, trapped in a haphazard cage, too exhausted and sore to even roll onto her back. 

        "What was with the telephones?" 

        She knew the voice without even having to turn towards it. He sounded close but his voice still echoed throughout the cave. It bounced off the walls and came back down on her, repeating the last word. Her stomach rolled at even the simple mention of them. Pathetic, she thought darkly. Utterly pathetic.