2.
The immense palace was cold and damp. Mary sat in the coldest part of the place. Or so she thought. With only Heidi and Renata for company, the tree girls sat in the room with human bodies scattered around.
"How on earth are we going to get rid of these," asked Heidi. Slowly the girls stared around. The bodies were covered in metallic blood and had a familiar bite at the neck. Mary grabbed one of the bodies by the hair and thrust it up. The body was female and felt empty. She'd been drained. Renata sighed as she began to rip up the bodies into small pieces.
"Why do we have to do this," complained Mary as she copied. The room smelled of blood. Stuck to the floor, bodies and walls was red and scarlet sticky blood. Calmly Heidi, Mary and Renata continued to rip up the bodies and began to pile them up in a corner. Finally, now the room was clean and tidy with the vague smell of blood. Carefully the collected up the bodies and took them outside into the garden.
The garden was cold and lifeless, as though the soul of it had been sucked out and thrown away. Cautiously, Mary looked up towards the huge moon, which dominated the sky, as it shone down like a large eye. Dim, exhausted stars shone down like small peering eyes. She stood in front of the bloody pile while Heidi and Renata heaved a large brass cauldron out from behind a holly bush. The moonlight danced off the rim of the cauldron gracefully and cast rays that scattered across the soulless garden. Careful not to catch herself, Heidi pulled out a silver lighter from inside her robes, with which she lit a tiny pile of wood underneath the cauldron.
"Now," commanded Mary, for she was in charge, "Take out their hearts." Heidi and Renata proceeded to do so.
Soon a small pile of hearts was steaming in the cauldron. Mary raised her arms; branches of ancient tress bowed and offered her their services. Heidi and Renata slunk into the shadows of their twisted and protective boughs. The souls of their bloodless bodies rose from inside their chests. They were ghosts. Popping up from all directions, lingering spirits were strewn over the garden, plasma leaking from their luminous bodies. Their lives were still ebbing away. They were slightly raised, parted from the ground. It was as if earth didn't want them back.
"Now," Mary spoke calmly, "Go and join your brethren."
The hearts were now boiled so far down that they were hardly recognisable.
"Quickly, dump them in the river." Renata and Heidi obeyed and then they began to pour petrol and pile wood onto of the bodies. Once again Heidi lit the lighter. Mary dusted down her dress that was now becoming speckled in ash from the fire. The smell of burning flesh hung in the air. Calmly, knowing that the fire would get rid of any evidence, the three girls walked back towards the grand, stone palace. Soon, they were almost through the door when a shadowed figure stepped out from the darkness.
"Renata, you may join us," he said graciously, "As for you two, you shall help prepare dinner."
The three girls bowed and continued on their way. Renata followed the ancient one; Mary and Heidi towards the little café.
It was full of customers, who, as soon as they walked in were mesmerised by Heidi. Slowly they walked over to the kitchen of the small café. Inside was a puny human man cooking meals as fast as he could. Silently they stepped inside and then slammed the door.
"Good God," he exclaimed. Mary snarled at him.
"How is feeding the five thousand going?" Heidi questioned looking out at the masses of crowds through the large, grease-stained window.
"Good, nearly everything is ready," the man replied.
"Nearly isn't good enough. What's your name anyway?" asked Mary.
"Reg," he replied, his voice now shaking.
"Well Reg." started Heidi.
"Heidi, lock the door and take them down to the hall," Mary ordered, to which Heidi obeyed and began.
Mary paced the kitchen. She looked around. The cooker was caked in food and waste and smelled suspiciously of rotting vegetables. The once white and spotless counters were now grey and dirty. Reg shook with fear. He was scared, he knew what may happen if he slipped up. He'd known that when he took the job.
"So Reg, have you been keeping up with our demands," started Mary.
Reg gulped, "Yes."
"The ancient one's aren't happy Reg," she continued, "They aren't being fed as well as their used to."
"I'll up my game, anything. Please," Reg pleaded. Mary began to pace up and down the kitchen again. She picked up a wooden meat mallet and held in menacingly in her hands.
"Right, I am sick of being threatened by you and everybody else." Reg exclaimed. He balled his fist, and now began to shake with anger. He summoned up all the power and force in his puny little body and punched Mary in the cheek.
Mary snarled and, forcefully, using the meat mallet as her weapon, hammered it into the side of his face. Soon he lay on the floor, quite dead. Mary had used the meat mallet to penetrate his brain and had killed him. She looked at the scarlet stream now pouring gracefully down his head. Mary's throat burned and the temptation closed in. She flung herself onto him and drained his body. Realising what she'd done, she ripped his body into pieces and threw his remains into the cooker. Instantly, there was a knock at the door and Alec entered in.
"They want you in the hall immediately," he announced and gestured for her to follow him.
The corridor to the hall was frozen and everlasting, but it showed off extraordinary wealth. Walking down the hall seemed to take up all the energy Mary had. Alec walked quickly down the rough stone flooring. Soon they both reached the door that lead to the hall. It was a double door with a wooden frame, plated in gold. Slowly, Alec opened the door and stood to the side as if to offer her inside. As she walked past him, she looked into his eyes. They were black, blacker than tar, so he obviously he hadn't fed in days.
"Enter in," answered a smoky voice. Mary bowed and strolled over to the middle of the grand hall in front of the three ancient ones. She caught Heidi's eyes.
Heidi was of medium height though she was one of the smallest of the guard. She had a slim build but was muscular. Her olive skin tone glistened in the natural light, and she looked about 25, thought she'd never asked. Incredibly, beauty filled the air wherever she went.
"You and Heidi, with a few more guards, will tackle the army," he finished. Mary nodded; bowed and exited the hall. What on earth was she going to do? She'd been too distracted by Heidi's unnatural beauty. Baffled by her emotions she ran to her chamber at the top of the castle. Soon, she flung open the door and threw herself onto the bed. The woollen throw that covered the sheets of her bed, was soon stained by tears. There was a knock on the door.
"Go away, can't you see I need some time." She shouted and threw pillow at the door.
The sound of shattering glass pierced Mary's ears and echoed throughout the castle. Mary looked up and saw the glass chandelier was disintegrating into shards on the cold marble floor. She heard the shards be brushed across the floor and the person step over the shattered glass
"I understand what you're going through," said a familiar voice
"No-one understands," yelled Mary.