Greetings from The Lady Mage,
Chapter 3. Enjoy. In this chapter, I introduce a character that you will see off and on throughout the rest of the fic. Read, enjoy, and review!
Rating: PG- just because I say so.
Disclaimer: *The Lady Mage stands* I, The Lady Mage, do not own Underworld or its characters. Thank you. BUT- I do own my own character that you will meet in this chapter.
* ~ * ~ *
" . . . here . . . hold this . . . "
" . . . doing it wrong . . . like this . . . "
" . . . shut up . . . he said . . . "
She was awake, but her eyes refused her silent command to open. She was laying down on something warm and soft in what sounded like a train. Her whole body felt numb, and her tongue thick with thirst. In the back of her throat she could taste something metallic. She'd been drugged.
" . . . she's finally waking up . . . "
Where was Michael? Where was she?
"Selene?"
Finally, she managed to open her eyelids just the tiniest bit, enough to see the young face staring down at her. Two innocent, curious, grass-green eyes looked down at her.
"You're awake." observed the young vampire. She barely looked sixteen, tucking her red hair behind her ears before it could swing down into Selene's face. When Selene tried to move, the girl gently held her down. "Shhh. Don't try to get up." she said softly, her voice soft, and soothing, and motherly. "You're not in any danger."
She couldn't feel anything- not even the pounding of her own heart. She couldn't feel her legs or her feet, couldn't feel the child still growing in her womb. Where was her baby? Was it okay? Was it even still alive?
Panic seized her and she redoubled her effort to move, to get up, to get away. The girl still held her down, her hands firm but gentle on Selene's shoulders.
"It's alright!" the girl said, ever calm. "Don't be alarmed. No harm will come to you!" She managed to pin the vampiress down again, and only when Selene quit moving did she remove her hands.
"Wh-where . . ?"
"Where is Michael?" offered the girl. When Selene nodded once, she gave her a warm smile. "He's still unconscious." She moved to the side a little, and helped Selene to turn her head to see across the room. They were in a darkened train compartment. Selene was laying on one couch, and Michael was laying on his back across from her. The young vampire was sitting on her knees on the floor between them. Another young vampire with long, black ringlets was sitting beside Michael, carefully cleaning his face with a cool rag.
The dark-haired girl looked at the redhead. "He'll wake soon as well." she said softly. "Do you want me to go get Tarah?"
"Leyna will be back in a moment." the redhead answered, then turned back to Selene. "I'm Kindra." she said softly. "Are you thirsty?"
Still dazed from whatever had been used to put her out, Selene had to stop to ponder what the word 'thirsty' meant. Before she could register the definition, the scent of fresh blood filled her nose, and she was lifted up enough to gulp down a cupful.
"There. Feel better now?" Kindra asked, her voice still kind- much kinder than any of the servants had ever sounded back at Ordoghaz. She used her gloved thumb to carefully wipe a few drops of spilt blood from Selene's lips.
"How long . . . have I been asleep?" asked the vampiress.
"Only a night and a day." answered the girl. "We're almost home- by tomorrow night, we will be back at Bainesworth."
"Bainesworth?"
"It is the name of where we are going. The name the peasants gave it hundreds of years ago- well before either of our times." Kindra pulled the thing blanket covering Selene up to the vampiress's shoulders. "Now, I shall strike a deal with you." she murmered softly. "I'll let you stay awake for a little while if you promise not to try and run. It's daylight outside, and if you aren't careful, you'll touch the light."
"I can't . . . I can't feel my baby."
Kindra nodded. "I know. It's a side-effect of the drugs. Your baby is just fine, Selene." The blanket was pulled back again, and the grey t-shirt that Selene had been redressed in was pulled up to her bust. Kindra lifted Selene's hand and tapped the woman's palm with her gloved fingers. "Feel that?" When Selene nodded, she placed it on the woman's stomach. "See?" she murmered softly. "Still very pregnant, and baby still very alive." She left Selene's hand there, pulling the shirt down to meet it, and the blanket up over that to keep her warm.
The compartment door slid open and another young girl- a lycan with bobbed blonde hair and brown eyes- stepped in, a little metal tray in her hands. She held it out to the dark-haired girl. "Here, Alissa." she said. "Jinna says this'll keep him out a while longer."
Alissa took the two syringes, and set one down on the table between the two girls. She gestured to Selene but spoke to Kindra. "Are you going to put her back down?"
"I told her she could stay awake." answered the girl, watching Alissa stick her needle into Michael's shoulder. A tiny, almost inaudable growl was the only reaction from him before his features relaxed again.
"Jinna wants to see you as well, Alissa." said the lycan. She turned with her tray, exiting the room. Alissa followed a few seconds later, sliding the compartment door shut behind her, leaving Michael, Kindra, and Selene alone.
"Why must we sleep?" Selene asked quietly.
"Jinna is afraid you'll hurt yourself." answered the younger vampire, turning her eyes back to her charge. "He doesn't want you or Michael to freak out and hurt one of us. It wouldn't be good for you to get all worked up in your condition, either." The girl gave her a small smile, then looked back down to her lap, producing a book as though she may read.
"How old are you? Where do you come from?" Selene asked softly, hoping to get information on just who had Michael and herself captured.
Kindra turned back to her. "I'm only 21- only a baby blood compared to you." she answered. "I was turned by a woman named Sophya five years ago when she needed a nanny for her human children." She smiled, though it wasn't a pleasant one. "She was a witch- a real, live, evil witch."
"How so?" Selene asked, slightly curious. Interrogation could wait until her head wasn't spinning so much.
"Well, everything I did was wrong to her." said the girl with a slight shrug, her attention back on her book. "She'd get angry with me and stick my hands in the sunlight for punishment."
The vampiress's eyebrows raised slightly. "What happened to her?" Selene asked, trying to sound as though she didn't care.
Kindra smirked, her eyes skimming the book. "Well, a few months ago, she went mad. Killed all seven of her children, then tried to kill me. It was the morning, and I was making breakfast like I always did- my room was in the basement, I didn't yet know that there were no more children to be fed. She came to punish me- for what, I don't know- but when she went to lift the blinds, her hands holding mine out to the light, the blind rolled up on her." She turned the page. "I dropped to the floor under the window, into the shadow. She caught fire. Died."
"Oh." was all Selene could murmer.
The girl chuckled, holding one gloved hand up for her inspection. "They found me the next night- a group of lycans from the New House- and took me back to Blainesworth with them." She clenched her gloved fist. "But even though it has been more than a half-year, and my hands have healed, I wear gloves as though I'm afraid someone will try to stick them back into the sunlight again." The fist returned to her side. "Such I will probably carry for eternity, my master couldn't permanently scar my hands, but she did my mind."
The two were silent for a few minutes before the girl turned back to look at Selene, her expression one of concern with a little embarassment mixed in. "You really should sleep, Selene. I can tell you're still tired." She lifted the extra syringe from the table and pulled off the cap. "This won't hurt you or your baby." She said, pinching up a piece of skin on Selene's shoulder. "This'll stick." she said, injecting the clear liquid into Selene's bloodstream before the vampiress could either approve or dissapprove the idea.
Selene registered the girl's lips on her forehead as she was gently kissed goodnight, and then all went dark once more.
* ~ * ~ *
So, what do you think? Like it? Love it? Hate it? Review and tell me!
The Lady Mage
Chapter 3. Enjoy. In this chapter, I introduce a character that you will see off and on throughout the rest of the fic. Read, enjoy, and review!
Rating: PG- just because I say so.
Disclaimer: *The Lady Mage stands* I, The Lady Mage, do not own Underworld or its characters. Thank you. BUT- I do own my own character that you will meet in this chapter.
* ~ * ~ *
" . . . here . . . hold this . . . "
" . . . doing it wrong . . . like this . . . "
" . . . shut up . . . he said . . . "
She was awake, but her eyes refused her silent command to open. She was laying down on something warm and soft in what sounded like a train. Her whole body felt numb, and her tongue thick with thirst. In the back of her throat she could taste something metallic. She'd been drugged.
" . . . she's finally waking up . . . "
Where was Michael? Where was she?
"Selene?"
Finally, she managed to open her eyelids just the tiniest bit, enough to see the young face staring down at her. Two innocent, curious, grass-green eyes looked down at her.
"You're awake." observed the young vampire. She barely looked sixteen, tucking her red hair behind her ears before it could swing down into Selene's face. When Selene tried to move, the girl gently held her down. "Shhh. Don't try to get up." she said softly, her voice soft, and soothing, and motherly. "You're not in any danger."
She couldn't feel anything- not even the pounding of her own heart. She couldn't feel her legs or her feet, couldn't feel the child still growing in her womb. Where was her baby? Was it okay? Was it even still alive?
Panic seized her and she redoubled her effort to move, to get up, to get away. The girl still held her down, her hands firm but gentle on Selene's shoulders.
"It's alright!" the girl said, ever calm. "Don't be alarmed. No harm will come to you!" She managed to pin the vampiress down again, and only when Selene quit moving did she remove her hands.
"Wh-where . . ?"
"Where is Michael?" offered the girl. When Selene nodded once, she gave her a warm smile. "He's still unconscious." She moved to the side a little, and helped Selene to turn her head to see across the room. They were in a darkened train compartment. Selene was laying on one couch, and Michael was laying on his back across from her. The young vampire was sitting on her knees on the floor between them. Another young vampire with long, black ringlets was sitting beside Michael, carefully cleaning his face with a cool rag.
The dark-haired girl looked at the redhead. "He'll wake soon as well." she said softly. "Do you want me to go get Tarah?"
"Leyna will be back in a moment." the redhead answered, then turned back to Selene. "I'm Kindra." she said softly. "Are you thirsty?"
Still dazed from whatever had been used to put her out, Selene had to stop to ponder what the word 'thirsty' meant. Before she could register the definition, the scent of fresh blood filled her nose, and she was lifted up enough to gulp down a cupful.
"There. Feel better now?" Kindra asked, her voice still kind- much kinder than any of the servants had ever sounded back at Ordoghaz. She used her gloved thumb to carefully wipe a few drops of spilt blood from Selene's lips.
"How long . . . have I been asleep?" asked the vampiress.
"Only a night and a day." answered the girl. "We're almost home- by tomorrow night, we will be back at Bainesworth."
"Bainesworth?"
"It is the name of where we are going. The name the peasants gave it hundreds of years ago- well before either of our times." Kindra pulled the thing blanket covering Selene up to the vampiress's shoulders. "Now, I shall strike a deal with you." she murmered softly. "I'll let you stay awake for a little while if you promise not to try and run. It's daylight outside, and if you aren't careful, you'll touch the light."
"I can't . . . I can't feel my baby."
Kindra nodded. "I know. It's a side-effect of the drugs. Your baby is just fine, Selene." The blanket was pulled back again, and the grey t-shirt that Selene had been redressed in was pulled up to her bust. Kindra lifted Selene's hand and tapped the woman's palm with her gloved fingers. "Feel that?" When Selene nodded, she placed it on the woman's stomach. "See?" she murmered softly. "Still very pregnant, and baby still very alive." She left Selene's hand there, pulling the shirt down to meet it, and the blanket up over that to keep her warm.
The compartment door slid open and another young girl- a lycan with bobbed blonde hair and brown eyes- stepped in, a little metal tray in her hands. She held it out to the dark-haired girl. "Here, Alissa." she said. "Jinna says this'll keep him out a while longer."
Alissa took the two syringes, and set one down on the table between the two girls. She gestured to Selene but spoke to Kindra. "Are you going to put her back down?"
"I told her she could stay awake." answered the girl, watching Alissa stick her needle into Michael's shoulder. A tiny, almost inaudable growl was the only reaction from him before his features relaxed again.
"Jinna wants to see you as well, Alissa." said the lycan. She turned with her tray, exiting the room. Alissa followed a few seconds later, sliding the compartment door shut behind her, leaving Michael, Kindra, and Selene alone.
"Why must we sleep?" Selene asked quietly.
"Jinna is afraid you'll hurt yourself." answered the younger vampire, turning her eyes back to her charge. "He doesn't want you or Michael to freak out and hurt one of us. It wouldn't be good for you to get all worked up in your condition, either." The girl gave her a small smile, then looked back down to her lap, producing a book as though she may read.
"How old are you? Where do you come from?" Selene asked softly, hoping to get information on just who had Michael and herself captured.
Kindra turned back to her. "I'm only 21- only a baby blood compared to you." she answered. "I was turned by a woman named Sophya five years ago when she needed a nanny for her human children." She smiled, though it wasn't a pleasant one. "She was a witch- a real, live, evil witch."
"How so?" Selene asked, slightly curious. Interrogation could wait until her head wasn't spinning so much.
"Well, everything I did was wrong to her." said the girl with a slight shrug, her attention back on her book. "She'd get angry with me and stick my hands in the sunlight for punishment."
The vampiress's eyebrows raised slightly. "What happened to her?" Selene asked, trying to sound as though she didn't care.
Kindra smirked, her eyes skimming the book. "Well, a few months ago, she went mad. Killed all seven of her children, then tried to kill me. It was the morning, and I was making breakfast like I always did- my room was in the basement, I didn't yet know that there were no more children to be fed. She came to punish me- for what, I don't know- but when she went to lift the blinds, her hands holding mine out to the light, the blind rolled up on her." She turned the page. "I dropped to the floor under the window, into the shadow. She caught fire. Died."
"Oh." was all Selene could murmer.
The girl chuckled, holding one gloved hand up for her inspection. "They found me the next night- a group of lycans from the New House- and took me back to Blainesworth with them." She clenched her gloved fist. "But even though it has been more than a half-year, and my hands have healed, I wear gloves as though I'm afraid someone will try to stick them back into the sunlight again." The fist returned to her side. "Such I will probably carry for eternity, my master couldn't permanently scar my hands, but she did my mind."
The two were silent for a few minutes before the girl turned back to look at Selene, her expression one of concern with a little embarassment mixed in. "You really should sleep, Selene. I can tell you're still tired." She lifted the extra syringe from the table and pulled off the cap. "This won't hurt you or your baby." She said, pinching up a piece of skin on Selene's shoulder. "This'll stick." she said, injecting the clear liquid into Selene's bloodstream before the vampiress could either approve or dissapprove the idea.
Selene registered the girl's lips on her forehead as she was gently kissed goodnight, and then all went dark once more.
* ~ * ~ *
So, what do you think? Like it? Love it? Hate it? Review and tell me!
The Lady Mage