Jessica Sorensen - Darkness Fades

I feel like I’m dying. Over and over again. Maybe that is what I’m doing. Being beaten to the point where I die so I can heal and start the process all over again. Over and over and over.

Life then death. Life then death. Life.

I’ve been staring at the same ceiling for so long that I’ve memorized every small crack and divot. The smell of the air is forever branded in my nostrils and what happened here will linger in my heart. The day Gabrielle captured me and Monarch stepped out as a higher; the man who I once thought of a father gone. I’ve been beaten repeatedly by since by Gabrielle and his Watchers, who work for the Highers and guard The Colony I used to live in, like they’re testing me for weaknesses. I’ve actually learned a few things about the Watchers since I’ve been here. 1) Is that they’re almost as disgusting as the vampires underneath the masks, something that I discovered during a fight I had with one and I managed to rip off the mask. They have no skin. At all. Which makes them sensitive to light and air and any sort of touch, which is probably why they wear the mask.

And 2) Monarch helped create them. But I wasn’t surprised by that, since he help created almost everything except for humans.

Every bone in my body throbs as my muscles battle to heal. The silver the Highers injected through my veins has slowed my healing process, making the injuries and wounds harder to bare. I can take it, though. I can take much more, if I have to.

I lift my head off the cold, concrete floor and examine my wounds. My arms are dotted with blues and purples; bruised and scratched. There’s dried blood in my long, black hair and it also coats my clothes. My face is covered with gashes at the same time that it feels like my nose and jaw are either broken or dislocated.

I want to keep fighting, yet it’s becoming harder to endure the pain. I’m exhausted, beaten to the core, no energy left in me. Finally, I let myself fall back down to the floor and my eyes drift shut.

“ Tell me why Aiden’s going to die,” I demand to Monarch as I stand in a small room with concrete walls.

Monarch stands near the doorway in his white coat, his voice trembling as he answers, “Because I messed up when I created him. I really did. And unless he changes his mind about his existence, he won’t survive… I’m so sorry.”

“ When does he die?” My voice sounds surprisingly choked. I ball my hands into fists and step forward. “Tell me,” I demand.

He swallows hard, shifting his weight. “Soon, unless you can change his mind about life and death.”

Blinding pain radiates in my jaw and nose, and my eyes fly open. I sit up, slapping my hands over my mouth as the bones in my face realign themselves into position, the muscles and tissues around them healing. The pain is blindingly intense, more than any other pain I’ve felt during my existence. I almost want to scream bloody murder, but I won’t give Gabrielle or anyone else the satisfaction.

After what seems like forever, the pain subsides and I remove my hand, letting out a breath of relief. I trace my fingers along my newly healed legs and arms, my cheeks, jaw and my nose. I’m as good as new. Not even a scratch.

I’m about to relax back, try to rest before it starts all over again, but then the lights suddenly flash off. Darkness suffocates me, surrounds me, traps me even more than I already am. Yet I can sense someone is nearby, watching me.

I push to my feet and walk over to the glass wall of my cell. I press my hand to the glass then stare into the darkness, searching for whoever’s out there. My night vision is an excellent asset and I can see a lot, including the glass cages around me. Each one appears empty, but I know they’re not.

“Gabrielle,” I call out. “I know you’re out there.”

He doesn’t respond and I’m not surprised. He enjoys messing with my head. Thrives off it. He’s been after me since he discovered that I have strength that only Highers are supposed to have and now that I’ve become a Day Taker, he only wants to torture me more.

As I turn around to sit back down on the floor, allow the darkness to blind me, cold fingers wind around my neck, choking the oxygen right of my lungs. I open my mouth to scream, but the fingers delve deeper into my skin, pushing against my throat so forcefully that I know that the bones are on the verge of breaking.

Then a hand winds tightly around my arm and I’m pulled back. The fingers leave my throat to be replaced roughly over my mouth. I throw my head back against their face, but they dodge to the side. I miss. I jab my elbow backward, grazing their rock solid chest. The stranger hops back, still holding onto me, their hand then clamps down on my mouth tighter. I raise my foot to kick them in the shin, but they maneuver us around in a small circle, throwing me off balance, and I almost fall to the floor.

Infuriation and frustration cause me to bring my fangs out. The pointed teeth slip sharply from my gum lines, unhinging my jaw before they snap, digging into the hand.

The person tenses, but quickly relaxes. “Shh…” a familiar voice whispers in my ear.

“Aiden.” With one swift throw of my weight, I shove him off and spin around. His arms fall from me and I tuck my fangs back into my mouth. “What are you doing here?”

He squints at me through the darkness then dares a step towards me, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes. He studies me momentarily with caution then grabs my hands and cups them in his, his skin notably warm.

“Tristan came back,” he says. “He told us the Highers came after you...” His eyes sweep me over as if he’s checking for wounds. “That they had Watchers with them and that you and Sylas were captured then taken prisoner.”

I nod warily. “Yeah, but how did you get in here?” I turn around to look at the cage door behind me, noticing it’s open. I also notice that it’s really quiet. Deadly quiet even.

Where are the guards?

I turn back to Aiden and cross my arms, stepping back, putting a little distance between us because I’m not sure if I trust him. He’s not the strongest person and the fact that he got in here… it doesn’t make any sense. “Weren’t there Watchers guarding the cages?”

He nods, his honey eyes relentlessly locked on me as a cocky smile spreads across his face. “Yeah, there were quite a few Watchers, but I convinced them that they should go take a break.”

I take another step back as more suspicion arises. “That doesn’t even sound possible… they wouldn’t simply go take a break because you told them to.”

“You don’t think?” he questions with a cock of his eyebrow. “Actually, I can be really persuasive when I try.”

Something’s wrong. This isn’t right. This isn’t the Aiden I know. Something’s different about him. But what? I assess him through the dark and notice that he does look a little bit different. His eyes are a hue darker and almost matching his hair. His skin looks paler, but in a strange, healthy way. It has a bluish tint to it, as though his veins have become more defined.

“Oh my God.” It hits me, like a kick to the gut, and the wind gets slammed out of me. “Why did you… how did you…? You’re a Day Taker now?”

His smile is my only answer.

“Why?” I whisper, inching farther away from him. It’s not like I’m worried that I won’t be able to handle my own if I need to fight him. I’m just not sure what the Day Taker version of Aiden is going to be like. He could be a lot different from the guy I first met—maybe even dangerous.