Chapter 1
The familiar pain that tore through Tessa's body was gone as fast as it had come. Staring down at the unfamiliar hands, she triumphantly jerked then out of the once tight ropes that had bound her to the bed. Rubbing her wrists, she quickly set to work on the ropes that were surrounding her ankles. As the ropes fell away, she swung her feet off the bed and stood up, walking quickly to the mirror as she shook the change from her body until a familiar brown haired, gray eyed girl stared back at her.
A noise that was coming from the door made her whirl around and horror washed over her as she watched the door knob wiggle back and forth, almost as if the person behind it was having problems opening it.
Quickly moving to the washstand, she grabbed the pitcher and positioned herself next to the door, raising it above her head. As the door flung open she lashed out, but was shocked when the person in the doorway moved like a whip, but not quite fast enough to avoid the projectile completely.
The stranger at the door was very male, obvious not only because of the yelp of pain, but also the string of curses that soon followed the yelp of pain. Shocked, Tessa's eyes snapped up to the gorgeous blue ones that peered at her with interest.
"That hurts." He stated obviously, much to the young woman's shock. After questioning the man, who she learned was named Will Herondale, they were in the process of talking about how to escape when they heard a line of carriages clattering to a stop. Panicking, the two teens ran down the stairs and through the house, attempting to find another exit.
"Miss Grey! You naughty little girl! Come back here! We will find you!" The voices of the Dark sisters rang throughout the hall, getting closer and closer. Will quickly thrust open a door into a side room and pulled Tessa in. He then quickly barricading the door behind them. As the man pulled out a strange glowing stone, Tessa's question of what it was died on her lips as they gazed at the room's contents.
A Slaughterhouse. That was what they were standing in. Dozens of naked corpses of young men and women were laid out on tables; their chests slit open and peeled back.
Tessa shoved her fist into her mouth to keep the scream that threatens to burst out from erupting. A quick glance at Will noted the same white skin and look of horror on his face.
"Mr. Herondale…?" Tessa questioned, worried that they were stuck in this horrible room. Just as he opened his mouth to respond, the doors shook, telling them their pursuers had arrived.
"Miss Grey! Open the door and we promise we won't hurt you!" Ms. Dark's voice floated through the wooden barrier that separated them.
"She's lying." Tessa told will automatically, thinking about the beating she had received only hours earlier.
"Oh really?" Will retorted sarcastically as he quickly ran over to a window and started yelling for a 'Henry' to come help them.
"What are we going to do?" Tessa asked, grabbing one of the gruesome utensils off of a table, examining the scalpel with thinly veiled disgust. Will sent her a look that practically dripped approval as he pulled out a strange blade that looked like it was made of crystal.
"Miss Grey!" And the doors were blasted off their hinges, revealing two figures clad in bright dresses, with maniacal grins spread across their faces. "You naughty girl, we are going to drag you back so…"
"I don't care!" Tessa screamed, "Beat me, whip me, and kill me!" A stunned silence followed the outburst, clearly no one had expected her to have any back bone.
"Such a sharp tongue you have Miss Grey, perhaps we will cut it out."
"Like hell you will!" Will snarled and shouted a strange name, causing the sword to glow. Tessa stared in wonder as the Dark sisters and Will shouted at each other, using strange words.
"Will!" Ms. Black had lunged at will, only to stagger in surprise as a gangly red-headed man and a burly youth burst through the window.
"Henry! Thomas! Quickly, we must get Tessa here to safety and deal with these monsters!" Will shouted as he attacked the sisters.
"Don't worry Will! I have an invention that will banish them!" The red headed man yelled, pulling out a strange looking device with weird marks carved into it.
"No! Henry!" But Will's scream came too late, for Henry had hit the strange button and a flash of bright light tore through the room, temporarily blinding everyone.
"Nani ga jigoku?" Tessa's head whipped around at the strange sounding words, frantically looking around for the cause. What she saw took her breath away. Standing in the middle of the room was a small trio of the strangest looking people she had ever seen. The two men had black hair, one who wore bound back, and the other with it cut extremely short. Both of them were tall and muscular, strange outfits that revealed too much. The one that took the cake though, was the girl.
Long, waist length, pink hair flowed down her back like a river of pink silk. Her outfit was so indecent even the women who spent their nights pleasing men for money would be scandalized. The red top showed off her shoulders, her white skirt reached mid-thigh, and was missing most of the fabric on the sides. Startled green orbs stared into grey ones, confusion etched into her face.
"Kore no imi wa nanidesu ka? Anata dare?" She spoke, making eye contact with Will, tilting her head slightly. Ms. Dark answered.
"Look at what you have done, Nephilim! You have summoned a race that will kill us all! The Shinobi will let no one live!" The screeching was cut off by a blur of black as she slammed against the walled, pinned by the short haired man. Before anyone could react, the screaming started. The man dropped Ms. Dark and turned to his comrades.
"The language they speak here is called English." He announced, a slight accent marring his otherwise perfect speech. The other two nodded before turning to the rest of the room.
"How did you summon us?" The girl spoke in a cold voice, distrust flashing across her face.
"Henry! That device was supposed to banish the warlocks! Not bring a strange race here!" Will shouted before attacking the remaining sister, swiftly beheading her.
"You summoned us? How? Answer me." The short haired man snarled, pulling out a knife. Henry blanched.
"I-I don't know! Please, come with us to the institute and we can…" The rest of the words were drowned out by an explosion that would have killed Tessa, had it not been for a blur of pink. As Tessa drifted in and out of consciousness, everything faded to a soft whisper, and the last thing she saw was the glowing green hands and a reassuring look on the other girl's face before she lost conscious