Chapter Note: Is anyone else able to cure headaches/mind grains with chocolate milk besides me? D:

Okay that doesn't really have anything to do with the chapter. Continue!


Chapter XV

I told Mr. Crepsley about what had happened at the very stroke of nightfall. Once I was done, he didn't say anything in return, but looked at me with a very troubled, saddened, and maybe panicked look in his eyes. I thought he was going to flip, maybe even blame me- which I wanted- but he couldn't find the words, I suppose.

"Then we will go after her." He soon announced, standing from his chair.

"How?"

"You said that Murlough promised not to kill her until the twenty-fifth, correct?"

"Right."

"Then we shall search for her tonight and tomorrow." He replied.

"But she can be anywhere in the city!"

"Not in the city- Under it." Mr. Crepsley said. "If you saw Murlough in the sewer drain, then that means he has probably set up base underneath the city, allowed to move about freely, away from the sun."

"But what if he was just using the tunnels to follow me?" I asked.

"We will have to take the chance." He replied.

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Ariel took a deep breath, the air heavy of despair and sorrow filling her lungs. It was completely dark, so she couldn't see a thing, (Even vampires need a little light) and quiet. But she accepted the quiet- It meant she was alone, at last. It promised safety.. for a little while.

Until he came back.

She was sprawled out on the cold, damp floor, her ankles tied together and her arms tied behind her back. Ariel's cheek felt numb, as it had been pressed against the ground for what seemed like years, and her golden hair was also flat against the tunnel floor, like a long beautiful, silk scarf- pieces in her face.

Her arms, legs, and face were covered with various cuts, dabbed with dry blood. Her white dress was splattered with dirt and blood. Crimson was smeared on her cheek.

Duct tape covered her mouth, so that if she wished to speak, she would be reduced to a murmur. That didn't matter though, it seemed as if all the breath in her body had been stolen, along with her voice.

If Ariel's hands weren't tied behind her, she would place one on her heart to make sure if it was beating, because she wasn't sure. It seemed to be broken, like shattered glass.

Without a single ray of light, their was only two hopes that she had. Closing her eyes, she pictured them and clung to the comfort that her thoughts gave her.

Darren and Mr. Crepsley will come for me.. She thought to herself. They'll come..

She thought back to all the nightmares she had had in the past, and considered the possibility that this was one. Ariel told herself that and held the hope close, but she knew deep down that this wasn't a dream.

This was real.

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I was loosing all my hope by the minute. There was way more space under the ground than Mr. Crepsley had predicted. The tunnels twisted and turned, like a maze, and seemed to have just been thrown all over the place at random. They seemed endless.

Some tunnels were dry and cracked, others half full of water and waste. The stench was horrible, and there were rats, spiders, and insects all over the place.

Still, I'll do anything to save Ariel. I could almost picture her walking besides us, lifting her feet high as she made her way through the water, going ew ew ew ew.

I really wished she was with us, but she wasn't.

"I do not understand why they need so many bloody tunnels," Mr. Crepsley said grimly, after several hours of unproductive searching. It seemed we had walked to the other end of the city and back, but when he stuck his head above ground to check our position, we had only gone about a third of a mile.

"Uh, I think different tunnels were made at different times.." I said, looking around. My dad used to work for a construction company and had explained a little about underground building to me. "They eventually wear in places, so it's easier to build new ones instead of go back and fix the old ones up."

"What a waste." He grumbled in reply. "There seem to be more holes than concrete- I am surprised the whole damned city hasn't fallen in upon itself."

After a brief moment, Mr. Crepsley stopped and cursed.

"Do you wanna take a break?" I asked.

"No," He sighed. "We shall continue- It is better than sitting around and doing nothing. At least we will have some sort of control over our destiny that way."

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Ariel could feel footsteps coming closer. She could smell the blood. Murlough was coming, his presence drawing closer and closer every second. Her heart began to beat rapidly, along with her breath, as she squeezed her eyes shut and squirmed her way towards a corner.

A sudden squeaking sound caused her to jump, slightly.

A rat was crawling around by her tied up hands. She felt it's tail brush against her skin. A brief moment later she could make out a small shape that passed her face. It stopped, and she could make out a pair of small, shiny eyes.

Help.. She thought. It was really stupid, asking a rodent for help, but she could make out the outline of it's body, and it's eyes seemed to understand.

It was gone a second later. Murlough was entering the room with a giggle. "Guess who I just had a wonderful chat with!"

Ariel shuddered, hearing the familiar whip of knifes being twirled around quickly.