"Revenge of the Crow"
Night 1 – Death & Rebirth
By: Yin-Yang"STOP IT!!" she screamed. But her attackers refused to listen. They laughed at her as she continued to struggle. The young woman could only watch as her older brother and younger sister were both beaten and raped before her eyes. Somewhere in the right of the room laid their parents, lying in a pool of their own blood. Dead.
Her mother, a fair woman with shining red-gold hair was laying on her back, a knife in her chest above her heart. One of the four attackers had tried to rape her first but she had hit him in the head with a golf club from the closet. In a rage the attacker threw a knife at her with such perfect aim that she was killed in an instance. Her father had just come in when his seven-year-old daughter screamed. He tried to fight them, bent on killing them in a blind rage. Unfortunately he was the one that was killed. Shot multiple times he landed next to his wife with his back braced against the wall. Their hands touched one final time before their souls left their bodies.
A little girl with her mother's shining hair and ruby red eyes screamed once more. She was being used in the most painful way, and being punished for crying. Already her young body was covered in swelling bruises and her own blood.
"Nina!" the older girl cried out, reaching a hand to her sister.
"Sis…" the little girl whimpered. She also reached out a hand to her. Their fingertips just brushed together when they each received a sharp pain in their hands.
"You two know we don't like for you to do that," a man said. The little girl was now hysterical because a sharp blade had been driven through her small hand, pinning it to the tilted floor of their living room.
"NOO!!! You sonuva-" she didn't bother to finish her cursing as she pulled the matching knife that pinned her hand to the floor. Rage in her eyes she faced the man that was using her and stabbed him directly in the right eye. He immediately fell back, clutching at his bloody face. She scrambled to her feet and slashed at the guy who had the knives and gave him a deep gash under his right eye as well.
"Behind you!!" the oldest child between the three of them called out. He had been hit with his baseball bat and just now regained consciousness. Unfortunately his right arm was broken in two places and he wasn't good at using his left.
She
quickly spun around and kicked the other in the jaw with a hook kick. He went crashing into the coffee table, his
long dark red hair looking almost like his blood. The older girl rushed to the one called Nina and used her knee to
smash the nose of the fourth attacker.
The green haired man gave a sharp cry and lurched to his feet. He pulled out a needle as was about to stab
her with it when the twenty-one year old brother tackled him into the
fireplace.
"Gary!" she cried out, for
fear of his safety. She quickly knelt next to the little girl and held her in
her arms. "Don't worry Nina, I'm here for you." She gave her a small smile and gently kissed her forehead. She struggled to her feet and saw the green
haired man drive the needle directly into her brother's spine.
He screamed in pain and reached up to choke the man but suddenly he felt so weak and sick. He dropped to his knees and then fell over. A thin trickle of blood escaped his white lips and his blue eyes were very pale and glassy.
The middle child held her sister tightly, the bloodied knife still in hand and slowly backed away from him. Unfortunately all four attackers were fast healers and they surrounded her. The one she had attacked earlier still held a hand to his now missing eye, his white hair streaked with his blood; next to him stood, who she though had to be the leader, kept rubbing the back of his head like he had a bump there; next to him was the one that held a matching knife in his own hand, the gash she gave him was still running but not as badly; and the last member of the small group, the one that injected her brother with something that killed him, was holding another needle in his hand.
"Stay away from us," she hissed through clenched teeth. "Come near either of us and I'll cut you." None of them listened and she lashed out with the bloodied knife. But they had caught onto her and reached out to snap her wrist. She cried out in pain and watched as they pulled her sister away and broke her spine clean in half over their knees. At that moment her life fell to pieces before her own eyes.
The white haired man reached out and grabbed a hand of her short, dark hair to pull her back. "Little tomboy isn't so tough anymore."
"I think it's time we teach her a lesson boys," the leader said as he moved closer. The other two moved closer and began to cut her with sharp knives, raining fists on her and tormented her everyway they could. This hell lasted for hours on end and they all stepped back to watch as she crumbled on the floor.
The poor girl laid there in the mist of it all, clothes in shreds, her body covered in bruises and blood, bones shattered to pieces, she had gone to hell and back but was still fighting. The poison in her system made her weak and kept her vision wavering back and forth from blurry to seeing double of everything. She was a broken rag doll as two of the men picked her up by her arms and dragged her up the stairs, down the hallway and into the master bedroom where it held a large pair of French glass doors that lead out to a nice balcony and looked down at the backyard surrounded by a tall black fence. In the back of her mind she knew what was going to happen but she could do nothing to stop it.
"One… two… three!!!" With a yell the two men hurled her through the doors and she went flying right out, somehow her body rolled during the momentum and finally landed on her back… with the sharp point of the stone and metal fence that were on either side of the back gate sticking out through her chest where her heart was located. She tried to say something, anything but her mind wouldn't focus and now to mention her mouth rapidly filled with blood. As her deep purple eyes rolled into her head and slide close a tiny tear mingled with the blood and pure rain as it wept along with her. The men gave her no more thought as they ransacked the home and stole everything worth of value, making this once lavish estate a ruin mess full of death.
From the mists of it all a lone black bird watched with black eyes, ignoring the rain as it continued to fall and wash away all the blood. On silent wings it flew to the dead figure of the girl and looked at her. If a bird such as he could express emotion he would have shown great sorrow and anguish. It looked at the house as the four men left, carrying large bags and drove off in a very expensive looking Cadillac with the canvas top down from the garage. Obviously they didn't give a damn about the speed limit and knew that it was just another item stolen from the now dead family. Shaking his feathers he opened his wings and with a couple of flaps was in the air. He had a duty to do but it would have to wait a while. So for now he flew around the nice part of the city, knowing that with this family gone the others would follow suit and leave this section of the neighborhood to the four crooks and their 'master'. The bird cawed in anger and flew higher into the storm clouds, only to be swallowed up by the darkness and disappear from site… for now.
A year later, couple of nights before Halloween a lone crow flew on silent wings to an old cemetery as a heavy rain began to fall. It had been a long year for this day but the moment had come. It was time to awaken the avenger and put things right before they became too out of control.
The cemetery was a mess of weeds, dead trees, and crumbling stone with the iron fence barely able to continue standing against intruders. With every wind it moaned in protest, echoing like the wails of the lost souls that were forced to stay here. The church, once a beautiful place well respected was now in worse shape as the graveyard. Windows shattered, wooded benches rotten through, stone turning to dust. It seemed like the only thing standing was the statue of the Archangel holding a real sword to the heavens. It was the most likely thing to fall last if this continued.
The black bird gently landed on a tombstone and looked up at the dark sky. Several seconds went by until the large clock showed it was now midnight. The day had just begun but instead of taking to the air the crow began to peck at the worn stone, the clicking sounds echoing throughout the dead area. A small rumble shook the stone and the crow cawed in triumph as it took a short flight to a low tree branch.
The ground continued to shake, stopping for a moment until the ground shifted way as the coffin buried deep inside opened up. A pale hand reached out and pulled the rest of her body out, screaming as loud as she could, tearing her funeral dress off herself until it hung in rags on form ghostly white form.
The silent bird watched and did nothing as the girl withered in the mud before getting to her feet and stumbled around. Her eyes were large and confused, wild with no reasoning about herself. She didn't even know her own name or why she had so many scars on her body. She was very dangerous in this state, not only to herself but to others as well. The crow cawed once again, meeting her eyes with his eyes when she looked at him and flew off at a height where she could still see him. The girl followed, wondering who she still was and what was going on.
In a slightly nicer part of town but still so close to the bad parts known as Hell's haven stood a large, flat building that held a sense of warmth that the rest of the area sued to have before it was sucked away into the darkness. A young woman with soft auburn hair paused in her needlework and looked out the window. The rain was still coming down in heavy sheets of water, a bad omen of something to come. She sighed softly to herself.
"Anything the matter, Nasuti?" a soft voice asked. A young man stood at the doorway, a few years her junior with light brown hair and gentle sea-green eyes always made him look younger than he really was. He was one of the oldest boys here at the shelter and helped all he could to keep this place running for as long as they could, wearing his faded and very worn shirt and jeans he was considered lucky among some of the others to have that much.
"Just watching the rain but arigato for your concern, Shin," she smiled softly, setting her hobby aside and got up from her old rocking chair. Her cotton blouse and black jumper dress made her look like a nun but she wasn't one just yet. Nodding to her friend they headed out of her room/office to the main area. "How are the others doing?"
"Ryou is with most of the littles, working on arts and crafts in the main room; Touma is helping some older kids with their studies; Shu is with the older ones in the game room, teaching them a few new moves; and Seiji is working on the bills again. He isn't sure how much longer we can hold up with the little we have.
"I know but we can't give up. The children need a place to escape Hell's Haven." She paused as they arrived at the large room in the small area, divided up into sections for different activities. It wasn't much but what they had was always put to good use.
In one side of the room a young man with jet black hair hanging pat his shoulders and intense tiger-blue eyes sat at a low table with a group of little children of about three to four years old, all dressed in ragged clothing. The table was littered with crayons, markers, pencils, and papers. They were all drawing and talking happily to each other.
In another corner with a bookcase holding many worn, torn books with titles rubbed completely off and lots of flat cushions on the floor, all equally worn and patched in so many places sat a group of slightly older children ranging from five to seven years old were doing book reports. Watching them was a young man with electric blue hair cut short in the back and long, uneven bangs falling into his midnight blue eyes. He helped some of the kids with the words and spelling, his lean body showing how tall he was even sitting.
Using up most of the area with a couple of mats, all torn in places with stitches coming undone was a large youth with large muscles, showing some moves to the older kids running from right to eleven. This was only to protect themselves in case they were cornered and when they saw the chance, like as fast as you could to either you home or to the shelter, which ever was closer. He looked over and waved to the other boy.
"Shin! C'mere I need a volunteer!" he practically shouted to him despite the short distance but the kids smiled and stifled giggles behind their hands.
"More likely to throw me around," he sighed but went over. He was right that as son as he was close enough he was flipped onto the mats in one smooth move. The kids clapped and asked how he did it. So he showed them much slower. Nasuti smiled, seeing everything was alright and made her way to the dining room that was empty most of the time but also served as a sleeping room since a lot of the children always choose to stay here when there was bad weather, like tonight.
As she entered she noted the worn blankets and pillows, a few ragged looking stuffed animals but the kids wouldn't sleep with the toys or the guys there to protect them from the bad shadows. Sitting at a table that had seen better days with opened letters and a simple calculator before him sat a young man with stunning blonde hair and pale blue eyes. He was figuring something out but occasionally sighed time-to-time and rubbed at his face with a slender hand. Silently she went behind him and rested her hands on his shoulders.
"You should take a break, Seiji. You've been sitting here, working on the bills for several hours straight," she said softly, kneading the tense muscles she felt there.
"I can't. There must be some way to keep going," he answered softly, leaning into her hands and set his pencil aside for now. He looked up at her, thick bangs hiding one side of his face as it usually did.
"And you'll find a way but rest. No sense working yourself into exhaustion like last time," she replied back reassuringly, leaning down to softly press a kiss to his brow and gave his shoulders another rub. She loved everyone like her family but her feelings had begun to run deeper for Seiji. They knew each other when they were young but when her parents died she was sent to a foster home run by wonderful Sisters, who did their best to raise the children the best they could. When she saw Seiji again just a few months ago they had become inseparable ever since. Once more she caught herself looking out the window, watching as the rain continued to fall and wondered what it would bring in its wake.
The girl shivered as she stood on the rotten porch of a once huge, lovely home surrounded by a large yard that had the life choked out of it with weeds, insects and rocks that had been thrown in. It looked so familiar… she looked at the crow perched on his shoulder, asking the silent question of whether or not to go in. The crow cawed what sounded like 'yes' and continued to sit there as she pushed the door open. It creaked on rusty hinges and faced a large, wide stairway that grew narrow as it headed up. The carpet, once red was now dark with untold stains and full of moth eaten holes. All around paintings were ruined, furniture either destroyed or what was seemed valuable stripped to its bare parts and let there. On heavy feet she made her way up the stairs, clutching the torn fabric even tighter to herself as an unseen force guided her to a large bedroom that had some shattered frames and photos still inside. The crow silently hopped from her shoulder to the vanity set that was still standing and reeked of rancid perfumes and such.
"Family…" the girl croaked from her unused voice, brushing the glass shards aside and looked at the color photos with the ends water damaged but was still able to make out a beautiful woman with shining red-gold curls framing dark eyes wearing a lovely cream gown, standing next to a tall gentleman with bright blonde hair slicked back from his face, revealing laughing blue eyes in a sharp looking suit. Sitting before them was another young man, about his early twenty with long blonde hair tied in a braid down his back and unruly bangs nearly hiding a pair of bright, sky blue eyes and wore a blue suit. Sitting in his lap was a cute little girl about six or seven with bouncing red curls about her angelic face and russet red eyes, wearing a nice yellow dress with ribbons. Standing a bit behind/side of the two was a young girl. Early teens with dark hair and matching dark eyes that both reflected a hint of violet in them. She was in a hunter green gown with long opera gloves and smiling prettily. It wasn't until the girl looked at the mirror of the vanity and at the photo when she realized what happened. The dark girl in the photo was her and the people… were her family.
With a heart-wrenching cry she dropped to he knees, her mind going through the flood of memories that flooded her mind and cried as new pain surged through her body. She ripped the remainder of her clothes off, running out into the balcony of the master bedroom and stood there in the open rain, letting it fall on her and cleanse her of the pain she felt, the blood that stained her body, and the hatred burning in her heart.
The crow watched her with unblinking eyes, cawing softly as it glided to a large wardrobe and perched on top of it, calling the girl's attention to it. She looked at the strange creature, asking what it wanted and saw. She knew what to do and would avenge her family. She threw out everything in the closet, sadden to see that some of her mother's lovely gowns had been stolen or ripped to shreds and pulled out a lovely black midriff with the folded collar dropping just off her shoulders, under her delicate collar bones and some underpants. Silently she pulled them on and found her father's old black, working boots and socks. She set them aside for now and went to the nest room. It belonged to her brother and silently she went through his things. His prized leather jacket he saved up for years was gone and she sore to find it and whatever was stolen before the night was out. She silently pulled on a pair of his fingerless gloves he liked to wear when he used to practice his boxing. The next room was suited to a little girl and wasn't as damaged but it still tore her heart out. Toys were broken and some ruined and her little jewelry box had been ransacked. She pulled out a pair of plastic earrings of black feathers and slipped them on as a reminder. The next room was hers and as she went in she saw her room was just as bad. Taking a deep breath she searched her drawers and came up with her favorite pair of stretch jeans, deep black with a silver bird on the right thigh. She headed back to her parents room and sat at the vanity and began to paint at her pale face. First a white face powder that made her look more like a ghost, then black eye liner and shadow, making her already dark eyes look hollowed with a line going down the middle lengthwise. Picking up a stick of rarely used black lipstick she painted it on, making them stand out from her pale skin and smiling evil to herself. She looked like a Lady of Death.
"Hai… that shall be my name. Death." She blew a kiss at her reflection and once more stood at the doorway of the balcony, watching the rain suddenly begin to lighten up to a light drizzle and then nothing at all. She watched it all with the ever-insane smirk on her lips and began to giggle. Softly at first before it grew and kept growing until she was laughing loud and hard but it wasn't a pleasant kind of laugh. It was an insane laugh that made women look around in fear, children cried in sudden panic and even brave men wet their pants. The crow fell back to her perch on her bare shoulder and laughed as well, their insane laughter echoing in the dark, silent, nearly dead city of this unholy piece of infected dirt. On the vanity was still the photo of the family of the last moment they were happy together and living. But it looked hard enough you could see in their eyes asking for revenge for their unseen torture and deaths.