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Playing With Fire

A Short Story

By Sandra DeePublished 6 years ago 10 min read
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Artwork also by author of story

Prologue

Not wanting to go in and face the demons from her past, she stood on the porch. With her hand shaking, she grabbed the doorknob and slowly opened the door. It was as dark as a moonless night inside the old house and finally working up the nerve, she stepped inside. Sealing her fate, the door suddenly swung shut with a bang loud enough to wake the dead.

Ava was born in 1804. Even when she was human, she was quite pale. She was 5’8” tall with vibrant green eyes, not hazel but, quite literally, green. She had deep, dark brown hair that in the right light looked black. She had never been sick; she was actually quite healthy. She had a photographic memory, which would later prove to be quite useful. When she was still human she was quite the pyromaniac as well as an insomniac. On the night of her nineteenth birthday she decided to spend the night alone and relax in a nice quiet environment instead of the noisy, smog filled city. She had just fallen asleep when she woke up with a start. There, sitting beside her bed, was a man. Thinking it to be her father she thought nothing of it and sat up to talk. As she went to light the candle she kept beside her bed, the man leapt at her, pinning her down. He ripped open the collar of her nightgown and bit her. He drank deeply and when he left her she was barely alive. She spent the next two days going through excruciating pain, feeling like her very lifeblood was on fire. After two days of this, the pain finally subsided and she found she was much stronger and her senses were more acute than they were before. Realizing she wasn’t human any longer she left, abandoning her old life and all those in it to start anew.

Not wanting to stay in the dark much longer, she pulled her small LED flashlight out of the holster she had strapped around her calf. Having ample time to prepare for this, knowing her very existence, her immortality, was at stake, she wore her leather battle outfit coupled with her iron corset over it. She slipped a holster around her calf, thigh, around her hips, one on each arm, and straps on the underside of her wrists that held her throwing daggers. She took special care to hide her breast dagger in the sheath she had specially built into the corset for such occasions. She turned the flashlight on to see how run down this house really was. With every other floorboard squeaking, the wallpaper peeling off and holes in the walls and floors, it looked like a house straight out of a horror flick.

Slowly creeping forward, out of pure instinct, she started searching the house. Finding nothing on the main floor, she moved on to the second floor. She searched all the bedrooms, and finding nothing even remotely suspicious, she went to search the basement. She knew that was where she would finally face her demons. After hiding and running from them for over two centuries, she decided now was the time to be rid of them once and for all.

She opened the basement door and was immediately hit with a blast of ice cold air. Shrinking back for a brief moment, she stood up straight and started heading down the stairs. The moment she stepped off the last step she was flung across the room like a rag doll, hitting the far wall with a sickening thud. Forcing herself upright, she concentrated on her surroundings so she would be able to use her night vision.

There were three creatures attempting to sneak up and attack her, thinking she could not see them at all. They had yellow, scaly skin and four fingers on each hand that ended in two inch long razor sharp claws. With teeth that could, amazingly, puncture some of the toughest metals and rock on earth, so she made certain to steer clear of their teeth and hands. It didn’t take too long to get rid of his minions. Once the last creature was dead, the room changed and she found herself in his domain, Hell. She was standing on an island of sorts. It reminded her of an outcropping that had broken away from the rest of the mountain, yet still managing to remain erect.

There he was, crouched at the other end of the rock island, watching her. She slowly advanced towards him, stopping when she had reached the center of the island. She sensed he was about to attack, so she readied herself, bracing her feet and holding the two hilts of the knives she had hidden in the sheaths on the underside of her wrists. He was only a few feet away from her when she pulled the knives out of their holsters and flung them at him with grace and great skill. They hit him, burying themselves deep in his shoulders. He ripped them out and threw them to the side, screaming, charging towards her. He hit her abdomen, making her fly backwards and hit the ground hard. He rushed towards her, intending on burying his sword deep in her stomach. With supernatural speed she got into a crouch, pulled her breast dagger out of her corset and flung it at him. His body crumpled and his head rolled off and hit the floor with a bounce, ending up in a corner. She walked over to where his head lay, looked down at it, and said, “I’m missing you already.”

“I know you better than that, you heartless reprobate,” Nikolai responded. With his last words spoken, she pulled lightning out of the sky and struck his head and body. With chances of him living a second life sufficiently smothered, she turned and walked away. As he died, the grand illusion he had created disappeared, revealing she was in the entryway hall with the front door wide open in front of her, beckoning her out into the warm embrace of the night. Thanking the gods that her nightmare was finally over, she let one blood red tear escape as she crossed the threshold, leaving her old life behind and graciously welcoming the new one.

The Beginning

She woke up feeling disoriented and slightly groggy with memories of the past few months a blur. Sitting up to get in a more comfortable position, she noticed a strange male lying next to her. Fear and basic instincts rising up in her, she leapt out of the bed, disregarding her nearly nude self, and crouched, readying herself for an attack. Feeling the jolt of Ava leaping out of bed, the stranger sits up and faces her, a quizzical look on his face. “You’re up awfully early today, love. Is something wrong?”

“Who are you, and where the hell am I?” Ava says with obvious venom in her voice.

Visible concern starting to show on his face as well as realization, he asks her, “What’s the last thing you clearly remember?” Not sure what to expect, he turns to face her completely, and waits. Unable to hold her strength any longer, Ava collapses onto the floor, and for the first time in 200 years, she cries. Surprised at her reaction to his question, he rushes over to her and gathers her up in his strong embrace, allowing her tears to soak his bare shoulder. They sat there on the cold stone floor for what seemed like an eternity, their joints creaking and locking up in protest as they finally started to stand.

“It’s all a blur, a grey haze that I can barely see through,” she whispers suddenly, continuing to say, “the last thing I remember is walking out the front door of that house after finally ridding this already damned world of Nikolai’s vile existence.” Taken slightly aback at her extensive memory lapse, he looks at her and says, “Well let’s just start from there then, shall we?”

Before he can start his tale, Ava interrupts, asking, “Now hold up just a minute, before you start filling the holes that riddle my memory I have a few questions for you.” Looking slightly amused, he motioned for her to continue, giving her his full, undivided attention. “Now you are about to tell me about my life, at least the part I seem to be forgetting, anyway. What I want to know is, are you a god, because only gods are omniscient.” He looks at her for a fraction of a second before breaking out into gut-wrenching laughs, holding his stomach all the while. Taken aback and slightly peeved, Ava angrily spits at him, “What’s so damn funny? I wake up next to a naked man I can’t remember and you’re laughing! There is nothing funny about this situation from where I’m standing!” As he is about to explain, Fen, their magical “pet,” strolls in saying, “What the hell is going on in here? I leave you two dimwits alone for a few hours rest and you practically have Ava ripping out your throat. Care to elaborate, Gilner?” Mouth agape, Ava can’t believe what is happening. Before Gilner has a chance to even attempt to start this fantastical tale, Ava passes out, collapsing on Gil’s lap in a heap.

A few hours later, Ava wakes up to a fire roaring in the fireplace in front of the bed and a note sitting on the pillow next to her with her name written on the front in elegant, old world handwriting.

My dearest Ava,

I apologize profusely for the events that occurred earlier while I was attempting to explain everything to you. I promise, I will tell you everything you wish to know, start to finish, with no interruptions. Before we begin though, I have set supper for you in the kitchen. Please, eat all you can and I will be waiting for you in the living room by the fireplace when you are ready to begin.

Forever yours,

Gabriel

Ava dressed in a rush, anxious to make her way down to the kitchen to see what Gil had laid out for her. Her stomach grumbled hungrily in violent protest as she slowly walked to the kitchen, amazing herself that she could easily navigate a house she failed to remember but could not recall the past few months if her immortality depended on it. As she entered the kitchen, her jaw dropped and she stared in wonder at the delectable feast that was laid out before her. He had prepared all her favorite dishes, from her time and this time. There was a chicken alfredo pizza, lasagna, cheesy chicken enchiladas, and slow roasted roast beef smothered in a mushroom sauce surrounded by homemade garlic and herb seasoned mashed potatoes. He had even made her favorite desserts. There was homemade ice cream, strawberries, raspberries and blueberries in cream, her favorite strawberry rhubarb pie, made with her mother’s recipe, and cheesecake. Forgetting her table manners completely, Ava grabbed the biggest plate she could find and dug in, grabbing everything her eyes rested upon. After filling her plate, she sat down on the stool next to the table and began eating, savoring every morsel, eyes rolling back into her skull in sheer pleasure. The next forty-five minutes were spent shoveling every bite of heavenly food into her mouth that was possible. Finally satisfying her intense hunger, she leaves the kitchen and starts walking downstairs to the living room. As she walked through the halls, she looked at the portraits and heirlooms that lined the walls. Portraits of her ancestors and his old life stared back at her, giving her a sense of belonging, a sense of home. The last time she had this feeling, she was still human and after losing her humanity she never imagined she would ever feel that way again. She paused right outside the doors to the living room, savoring the moment and the intense feeling of love and belonging that surrounded her. Unsure what she would hear after passing through these doors, she prepared herself for the worst, yet hoping for the best as she pushed open the great oak doors and stepped through, embracing the unknown.

fantasy
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About the Creator

Sandra Dee

Mother of two trying to find herself again

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