I bolted blindly after the silver light that was gliding mere inches in front of me. Many hushed voices whispered desperately around me, begging me to set them free from whatever invisible chains bound them to the nothingness. Nothing but darkness surrounded me and the small sliver orb.
"What is your wish?" a louder voice asked, coming from directly in front of me. My guess was that it was the light that was calling out to me.
"I wish you would slow down!" I retorted sarcastically, panting as I charged through the blackness.
The light grew, moulding itself into the shape of a man that kept moving forward although his limbs were absolutely still. The man had long white hair and hazel eyes. He wore a black cloak and his smile appeared kind.
Appeared.
His shimmering eyes winced and his smile spread. "Tell me your wish, Hitomi. I will give you your wish."
My lungs burned and my legs ached with a desire to stop chasing after this mysterious figure. I figured that maybe if I wished something, he would stop forcing me to follow. "I wish I didn't have to be afraid!" I screamed. Although I only said that to test a theory, it was something I had wanted for a long time.
Hazel pools in the man's eyes flickered crimson, and his skin flashed a deadly pale. It was only for a fraction of a second, so I just assumed it was my imagination.
The man stopped advancing forward so quickly that I ran right into him. The man helped me up and hugged me.
"Hitomi," he whispered. "Your wish is my command."
Suddenly, he disappeared. Everything disappeared. The comforting warmth of the man's embrace, the tempting whispers of the ghosts, even the blackness itself. Everything was gone. I felt the sensation of falling, but I couldn't be sure that I was. I couldn't be sure that I was even alive.
I woke up with a start, gasping for air. It took a few moments for me to recompose myself after such an odd dream, but I managed to control my breathing after a minute or two.
Sunlight cascaded through my window, decorating the hardwood floor with pools of golden light. I sat up and managed to drag myself out of bed to look through the clear glass. The Empire, I thought. I never get tired of this beautiful sight.
There was a knock at the door. It startled me. I let out a small squeal of surprise, notifying the visitor that I was awake.
"Mistress?" A young boy's voice echoed blankly through the door. "There is someone here to see you."
I couldn't help but smile. I knew who it was. "I just woke up, Cren. Tell them I will be downstairs in a minute!"
"As you wish, miss," Cren said before leaving.
I scrambled to my closet to find a dress. I flipped through all of the formal wear for parties and meetings and such. It made me realize how busy I really was, even for a fourteen year old girl.
Finally, I found an orange sun dress that looked perfectly casual. I didn't want the guest to think that I thought of them so poorly. I wanted them to know I thought of them as a close friend.
I brushed my hair quickly and then put on the orange dress. I ran downstairs as fast as I could, nearly falling straight into the black haired boy. He gasped and flinched, not expecting such an energetic response to his arrival.
"Nick!" I smiled, grabbing his hand and dragging him into the living room of the huge mansion I lived in.
Nick and I had been friends for so long I didn't even think there could have been a time without him. He laughed and allowed me to pull him along.
We sat down on the large velvet sofa and began talking about various things that had happened recently. "So what's new with you?" He asked.
"Well, you know... stuff," I said simply. "I had to show up for another one of those stupid convention things and give a speech about the importance of living in harmony with the Methuselah."
Nick noticed how my jade eyes darkened when I mentioned the word Methuselah. He knew how terrified I was of them, seeing as my parents were both brutally murdered by them right in front of my eyes when I was only six years old.
Since then I was adopted by this rich family and they taught me how to be the perfect lady, but I despised being perfect. Nick knew how much I hated it, so he and I promised to never be "perfect" around each other.
Oh, I guess before I move any further into the story you should know that the Methuselah are vampires. They call us humans "Terrans".
Another knock at the door caught our attention. "I'll get it, wait here." I said, getting off of the chair, walking past the room where Nick's parents were conversing with mine, and to the front entrance. I opened the door to see a pretty little girl dressed in emerald color clothing.
The Empress!
She was the only Methuselah I could actually put my trust in. She was childish and kind, just like her appearance. The only thing was, she wasn't a child. She was well over a thousand years old, but her innocent appearance was probably some way of gaining trust from within the empire.
"Good to see you, Empress," my foster father came through, bowing his head before showing her to the living room. I quickly bowed too, feeling stupid for not doing it when I first saw her enter.
The girl laughed and said, "I told you before, just call me Seth."
"Seth," dad corrected.
I followed them back and sat beside Nick, now feeling horribly underdressed in the presence of the Empress.
She looked right at me with her soft gaze. "I actually came to talk to you, Hitomi. You see, you are an icon of harmony within the empire. Your parents, Mr. and Mrs. Arbor have asked me to do them a favor to sustain you as that icon. Normally, this would be forbidden, but I have come to the realization that it would do well for the empire. So, will you do us a huge favor?"
"F-favor? What kind of favor?"
"I need your consent before I explain the situation. I fear that you will change your mind once we tell you," Seth said.
That worried me. What on earth was she going to make me do? "Um... sure, I guess I can do whatever you need me to."
"Hitomi Arbor!" mom scolded, "Speak to Her Highness in a respectful manner!"
I bowed my head in apology. "Don't worry Mrs. Arbor, I'm not insulted." Seth turned to me. "The favor is that I need you to bond the Terrans and Methuselah. I have made the preparations for you to be married."
What? WHAT? "Married? To a vampire?!" I screamed out loud. I turned to Nick, silently begging him for support. He looked equally as shocked as I did.
Seth's content expression contorted to surprise. "I thought you supported the Methuselah and Terrans living together?" she asked with an extremely confused expression etched on her face.
"I-I do... But I am terrified of vampires... How am I supposed to marry one?" I almost felt like I could cry. My heart ached with dread.
"You seem just fine talking to me," she smiled. "Trust me, I have already picked out your suitor and he isn't going to hurt you."
I felt beads of sweat trickle from my forehead. Nick took my hand and squeezed it, attempting to comfort me.
Everything seemed to disappear from me, just like the dream I had prior to this meeting. Once I regained consciousness, I swatted Nick's hand away, stood up and left.
No, no, no, no, NO. This can't be happening! The thoughts screamed through my head as I ran straight to my room and slammed the door shut. I threw myself into my bed and began to cry into my pillow. "I don't want to... I'm so scared of vampires and I'm so young..." I sobbed out loud.
"Hitomi... can I come in?" Nick's voice was muffled behind my door.
I didn't answer.
The door creaked open, and Nick entered the room shyly. "Hitomi, the Empress..."
"Seth," I corrected.
"Seth said she's sorry for scaring you. She wants you to at least meet your suitor before you decide whether or not to go through with her favor."
I froze. "He's here?"
Nick nodded.
"Does he look scary...?"
"Not really. He has red eyes, but he looks quite innocent to be honest."
I decided to go meet him. Nick helped me up and I clung onto his arm the whole way down the half-circle shaped staircase.
I saw the boy I was betrothed to. He had light blond hair. I mean light. It was almost white. His skin was pale and he had piercing red eyes that looked like pools of blood.
My grip tightened around Nick's arm. He looked at me, silently reminding me to keep it together.
The boy looked slightly irritated, but at the same time he looked kind. I could tell he was forcing himself, though. It was obvious he didn't want to be married to a Terran.
Seth smiled. "This is Ion Fortuna," she explained. She turned to Ion. "And this is Hitomi Arbor."
"Necrene," I quickly said. "My last name is Necrene."
My foster parents shot me dirty glares. Screw it! I loved them, but they know that my last name has always been and will always be Necrene. It was my parents surname, and its the only thing I have left of them.
Ion stretched out his hand to shake mine, but I jerked backward quickly. Just because we have been introduced didn't mean I completely trusted him. Heck, I didn't trust him at all.
Nick held me close and then whispered in my ear, "At least try and get along. If he hurts you, I'll kill him."
You could almost feel the concentration snap. "I can hear you, filthy Terran!" he growled.
As scared as I was, when someone insulted my friends I wouldn't let them get away without one of my rants.
"Filthy? You call him filthy?" I began, my voice raising from a whisper to a threatening shout. "Nick is more of a gentleman than you! Disgusting vampire!"
As soon as the words left my mouth I regretted it. I sunk back behind Nick and he stood over me protectively. If there is anything Methuselah hate, it's being called a vampire... Even though that is what they are.
Pivoting on my feet, I rushed back behind the staircase and through the door that was hidden behind it. It opened into a corridor that lead to the backyard. The backyard was beautiful in the morning light, with gardens everywhere and three large fountains spitting out water.
"Hitomi! Stop running off!" Nick sat down beside me on the bench.
I couldn't look at him. "Why did I have to agree, Nick? I'm betrothed to a vampire! Don't let my parents marry me off... Please..." I began to sob into my hands again.
His eyes were sympathetic. "You don't have to be scared," he whispered. "I won't let anyone hurt you."
"I wasn't going to hurt her," Ion's voice sounded blankly behind us. I turned and saw his irritated glare. "I didn't expect someone who is an icon of harmony between the two races to be so scared of us. I apologize for acting so harshly."
I certainly didn't expect an apology, attempting to conceal my still obvious fear, I mumbled, "It's okay, Ion. I'm sorry for yelling at you."
Fear surged through me as he stepped closer... What was he going to do next?
"Listen, it's obvious you don't want to do this. Neither do I, but it's for the Empress. Can we at least try to get along?" He asked, looking equally as nervous as I did.
Nick squeezed my hand. It was as if he were encouraging me and begging me to refuse at the same time. I gave Ion a subtle nod. He reached his hand out to me again. I gently took it and he helped me up.
"Don't be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you."
"Promise?"
"Promise."