Earthbound Fate: Chapter Two

A/N: I'm not one to go about sounding my own trumpet, but I think I did pretty well on updating this time round! This chapter isn't too long, but neither are the others! Any-who, enjoy, leave a review and constructive criticism is always accepted!

I strolled lazily along the streets of Stoneshire, my current location and the victims of my criminal offences. It was early in the morning; the sun's rays were barely visible in the eerie winter fog. Not a single person was roaming the streets, not a single child running about. I like it. Peace and quiet. I wandered along the row of poorly built houses, taking my pick of which household I should sneak into today. The most amusing thing about this village is, despite the fact that the robberies and disappearances have started since I've arrived here, they're foolish enough to not have joined the dots. Not that I'm complaining.

Ms. Spooner has probably figured out already, being part of the smarter percentage of the village, but she hasn't talked to me about it. I'm sure she would if she knew, since she's always been concerned about where I live, my health and general wellbeing.

I snarled as I saw a small boy peering at me through his bedroom window. I flashed him a harsh glare and smirked with satisfaction when I saw him fumbling over the curtains in his haste to draw them shut. I loved how I seem to give a message of fear to just about everyone in this village; from the oldest senior down to the smallest infants. No one dares to go near my territory, meaning the large forest south to the village was off limits.

One of the perks of having rumours going on about you is that people tend to stay away. There are several minerals and valuables that are in the forests, and I know the miners of the village are practically biting their tongues in their eagerness to mine here. There are lots of mines and cave systems that go down to bedrock, lavished in glittering diamonds and rolling in emeralds. Making me a rich person. I know for one that the village chief is certainly not scared of me, but keeps his distance nonetheless. It's quite weird actually - villagers would usually go all out to prepare troops if so much as a neighbouring wolf wanders in, but I, a small, young girl with an unusual appearance, suddenly wards them off? Certainly suspicious. One woman once told me that all good things must come to an end; right before she chucked me out of her house. I wonder if that's true or if she was just trying to make a point?

I passed by a particularly rich-looking house and stopped. Perfect. I continued down the road, as to not look suspicious, then turned around and ambled down the paths behind the houses. When I reached the house, I clambered through the window with ease; making sure to land on the tips of my toes to prevent any sounds wandering upstairs to the house's sleeping occupants.

Standing up, I casually walked into the kitchen, which I must say, has a poor interior design. I sauntered over to the large wooden chests lined around the perimeter of the room that are usually filled with food. I opened one up and peered inside for anything edible.

Nothing. Odd...

Suddenly, I heard a sharp hissing noise coming from the chest. What?! That can't be a creeper!

Before I knew what was happening, the chest exploded, completely demolishing the entire kitchen and eradicating every object in the room.

Groaning, I sat up, tensing in fright when I heard a cluster of panicked voices coming from upstairs.

Of course. This was obviously a trap of some sorts to get me caught in action (and possibly blown to smithereens). I'm just glad it didn't work...

Picking myself up from the now charcoal coloured cobblestones, I darted out of the house as quickly as possible, just as the shadow of a tall, broad man entered my line of sight.

I tumbled out of the window, not caring if I scraped my knees, and bounded off, not even looking behind me in my haste to flee.

I should have known! A rich house like that would obviously have some kind of security! A stupid kind though; why bother with security that can destroy half off your house? What a waste of time. Both for me, and for them.

Guess I'll be scavenging for apples again...

I bit into what was probably the hardest apple in all history, and spat out my mouthful immediately. What is it with the apples in the area nowadays? They taste like rocks! Sighing, I half-heartedly tossed the apple away in disgust. I stared down at my stomach, who stared back at me with non-existent pleading eyes. I'm hungry, and I don't like it.

Think Doré, where else could I easily obtain a free supply of food? Stealing is out of it; I've already raised an alarm and there's probably a large crowd out there and even more houses with all that stupid security. I could grow my own crops, but the ground isn't that fertile so I usually don't have the patience to tend to it well and revitalise it. So that only leaves me with a few options... I guess I could hang around Ms. Spooners house...just for a bit.

Slinging my large, black backpack over my thin shoulders, I climbed down from my treetop home on vines then made my way back North.

Like I had predicted, there was a large crowd surrounding the half-demolished house, and they didn't seem to be dispersing any time soon. Although I tried to avoid the crowd as much as possible, I still got close enough to hear a man, who seemed to be the owner of the house, raging about some malfunction. I guess they weren't as stupid as I had thought; the 'blow up half the house' part obviously wasn't part of the plan.

Passing by, I headed down the Ms. Spooner's neighbourhood, which was considerably empty today. I guess the aftermath of an explosion is a must-see then.

Pulling the hood of my dark purple hoodie over my head, I walked up to Ms. Spooners door and rapped on the ageing wood with unnecessary force. I'm not trying to be rude, but Ms. Spooner doesn't have the best of hearing, especially when she sleeps so I have to make sure I'm heard.

After fifteen seconds of silence, I lifted up the flowerpot on her porch and grabbed the spare keys under it. She says she leaves them there if she ever gets locked out, but I think she likes to keep it there for me to enter. She trusts me, and seems to not care what I do or eat at her house. I don't know how she would respond to me being a thief though... I would never steal something from Ms. Spooner, but would she judge me?

I placed the key in the lock and turned it, adding a bit of force to open the stiff, wooden door that's almost on the verge of rotting. Despite the house's grim outdoor appearance, Ms. Spooner takes care of her home, making it as comfortable as a one bedroom shack could get. She has several flowerpots and vases, various paintings of cats spread about her walls, and has a passion for baby blue and cream combinations. I honestly don't mind, as long as it isn't pink. She said she used to have a cat, Miffy she called her, but the pet had died the year prior to our meeting over a terribly cold winter. I felt sorry for that cat. Although I'd never meet her, my love for the furry felines won me over, and I spent a good ten minutes thinking about how that cat could have lived to change the world. Ah well, we all live, we all die.

Taking my shoes of, I stepped onto the lush, cream carpet and headed upstairs. Making a right from the landing, I walked up to her bedroom door and knock slightly.

Silence.

Odd. Usually she would be up at this time of day, or reading a book. Awake nonetheless. Maybe she's outside, or just extraordinarily tired?

I knocked again, putting a bit more force into it. Still, nothing. Not a single stir or snore sounded from the room. Yes, she's probably out... But didn't she say she wanted to stay home and do some knitting this Sunday?

Ever so gently, I nudged open the door with my foot, and peered into the room.

I took one look and almost screamed.

Ms. Spooner lay on the floor a few feet in front of me. Sprawled out and still.

Unmoving. Silent.

Her arms were bent at an awkward angle, like they had been broken. One of her hands had fingers bent in weird shapes, obviously forced apart by a strong arm.

Her mouth was lolling to one side, and with a closer look, I realised that her tongue had been cut off and the dark red fluid flowing out of it was blood. But the worst thing was her neck. She had three deep, jagged gashes along her neckline; crimson blood tainted with a dark hue still gushing out of the freshly-cut wound. I couldn't see the wounds all too well, but the amount of blood coming from it was enough to tell me that it was deep enough to hurt. And kill.

The putrid smell of blood tickled my nose, and was working it's way to my stomach, until I couldn't take it anymore.

I bent over and threw up. Shaking, I stood up and took a glance at the reeking corpse in front of me. Walking next to what used to be my only friend, I placed the hand that was still intact in mine, kneeled over and bowed down my head, my eyes stinging.

But I kept on waiting, and waiting for the tears to come, to help me release a little of the torment inside of me. But none came.

What's wrong with me? Don't I know how to cry?

A/N: Well wasn't that beautiful! I'm not to good at writing death scenes, but you get the message. Poor Ms. Spooner's throat was slit, her tongue cut off, her arms broken and her fingers all mangled up. Not the goriest death in the world, but certainly not a happy one. What do you guys think? Did she deserve to die 'cause she was an annoying old busybody, or do you feel sorry for her? (I DON'T! After all, she's MY character, so I don't need to give her pity! Okay, maybe I do... I may be crazy, but it doesn't mean that I don't have a heart!) Well, apart from that, I must say it's not a very interesting chapter. Sure, there was the failed robbery and all, but that doesn't get much credit...even though half of the chapter's about it. For someone so AMAZINGLY powerful, how the heck did she get outsmarted by a failed security system?! And she's obsessed with cats! How can this situation possibly get any worse...

Anyways, from here, hopefully things will pick up a bit, so that's a good thing! I don't know when the next update will be (who does?), but I'll probably have a chapter up by the end of this week. Maybe two? If not, you'll know I'm working on it!

Anyways, stay cool and check out WH1T3R4V3N's stories! You won't regret it, I'm telling you! She's an awesome person, a great Beta-Reader, and I'm lucky to know her! Her stories are updated regularly (unlike mine) and they're addictive like hell, so go see for yourself!

Leave a review and keep reading!

~Deeptiger