At Death's Door Read online

  “Maybe we should..” I started. Eris just shook her head.

  “Nope.”

  “So we’re just gonna-”

  “Yep.”

  “Is there anything we can-”

  “Nope.”

  “Okay.” So we just stood there until the screaming stopped and Mona walked back out. She was dragging Gabriel with her.

  “What the hell did you do?” I asked as she dropped him and slid the part back into her back.

  “He is still breathing,” she shrugged.

  “Okay cause if he-” I sighed.

  “I think,” Her face was deadpan when she said it. I cursed under my breath.

  “Well then,” Eris muttered.

  “Now then where was I?” Mona said as she continued with what she was saying. What? Did nothing freaking happen or are we all just going insane?!

  “Oh right. Ella was your Witch. The light coming from the people is a way to make sure that their souls never leave since the way to your soul is through the eyes. The light coming from the mouth is symbolic. Ne pas entendre ce qui ne peut pas parler. Hear not what cannot speak. Whoever did this knew what they were doing,” Mona said, “As for the painting…” I looked back at the painting. It showed four shapes: two hearts, and two diamonds. They were grouped together, the two diamonds on either side while one heart was on top and the other was on the bottom. The diamond on the left side was a dark green that reminded me of fresh grass. The diamond on the right was blood red and seemed to be missing almost half of it with cracks running through it. The heart on the bottom was dark like a night sky. The heart on the top was a royal purple with a crack almost going from the top to the bottom.

  “All the kingdoms have one only depicting a different part of the story,” Eris put in.

  “What the hell…” I whispered.

  “Let me explain. Have you ever heard of the story about the four witches?” Mona asked.

  “Yeah it’s a bedtime story all the little kids get told to teach them teamwork,” Gabriel said as he walked over rubbing his head. Looks like he woke up.

  “I never heard it,” I replied.

  “Of course you haven’t, mommy went bye-bye before she could tell you,” Gabriel said under his breath.

  “What’s it about?” I asked glaring at him.

  “Well the story goes that four witches, one with white hair and white eyes, one with black hair and black eyes, one with blond hair and pure white eyes, and one with red hair and red eyes, were banished from the mortal world to live the rest of their lives in a black void called the Valabin. The witches came together prayed to the gods of that void, Ke Ahi, and Vira, to give them the power to make a world all their own and lived happily ever after,” he said.

  “Yer missing a bit o’ the story there,” Eris pointed out.

  “Yeah yeah, when the four witches of Valabin were finished creating their world and each had made a kingdom, they all decided on a name. The one with the white hair was called Deces, the one with the black hair was called Foi, the one with the blond hair was called Vie, and the one with the red hair was called les Damnes. They bid farewell and spent decades in peace,” Gabriel muttered.

  “One year the Vie wanted more power so they tried to conquer the Foi but failed. So they conquered the mortal world,” Mona continued.

  “They saved the livin’ and posed as their gods,” Eris added.

  “But the other three witches did not like that. The mortals are to die when their time came. So they tried to overpower the Vie and in the process, Les Damnes were turned to mere ashes and the Foi piles of dust. The Deces, being the only ones left, took the Vie and locked them away forever. The end,” Mona finished.

  “But that’s just a story,” Gabriel pointed out, “Plus even if the story is true then why isn’t my eyes and hair white? Or Snowdrop’s eyes? Or Lily’s?”

  “Because the Deces decided that they didn’t wanna look like the Vie, so the Witch made it so that everyone can have a different eye and hair color than everyone else. Normally the only ones with white eyes and hair are the ones related to the original Witch, meaning that it is also almost impossible to kill her. Ella here didn’t have any of that blood in her. She was married into it,” Eris explained.

  “The only way Ella could stay in power is if she had a descendant as a daughter, which she did just no one knows how or even what she looked like. Rumor has it that she hated the throne so much that she ran away never to be seen again. Some said she died, others say she dyed her hair to blend in, I think she went to live in the mortal world like Eris and I did because it is full of strange haired people,” Mona shrugged.

  “What was her name?” I asked.

  “No one knows. She was like a ghost. A faceless princess,” Mona replied.

  “We need to find someone to take the throne until someone can find the next one in line,” Gabriel added.

  “The only Witch still alive besides the Vie is Les Damnes and she’s miles from here,” Eris pointed out.

  “Then we better get going,” I started walking out of the castle when I saw someone with three white wings on their back digging through the ashes. I pulled out my white bow with the red vines wrapped around it that my mom said it use to be my father’s. I trained it on the stranger and got closer.

  “Drop any weapons that you may have and put your hands up,” I said as Eris and Gabriel came out.

  “Please, I’m not looking for trouble,” the person said as they stood up and turned around just as Mona came out.

  “Ethan?” Mona almost yelled as she ran towards him.

  “Miss Lisa!” Ethan yelled and hugged her tightly. When they pulled away I was able to get a good look at him. His eyes were the pure white of the Vie. His teeth were pointed and he had two piercings on either side of his bottom lip and one on his nose. His hair was black with blue tips that covered half of his face. He wore blue pants with a plain brown belt. His shirt was a white button-down underneath a golden button up vest and a sleeveless plain black jacket. He was Vie but for once I didn’t feel that threatened.

  “Ethan, what are you doing here?” Mona asked.

  “I was sent here to see if there were any survivors, but Miss Lisa, what are you doing here? Everyone was told that you were turned into scrap metal,” Ethan asked quite concerned. Mona almost looked like she was gonna cry.

  “I am alive, Ethan. Thorn helped me. She is not the enemy. None of them are,” Mona cried as she hugged Ethan harder than before, “I am just so glad you’re not dead.”

  “Me too Miss Lisa, me too,” was all he said. It was really awkward because I was gonna kill that guy and it turns out that he was a close uh...hm.

  “Hey sorry to interrupt, but who is this douche?” Gabriel asked.

  “This comin’ from the king of D-bags,” Eris muttered. I had a hard time trying not to snicker.

  “Oh uh...heh, friends, this is Ethan. He was the one assigned to take care of me when I needed it,” Mona kinda stuttered.

  “Miss Lisa here is just being nice. I was in her debt because she had saved my life when everyone found out that I couldn’t kill, she took me in and I became her ever devoted servant,” Ethan said softly.

  “I told you a long time ago that you were not my servant,” Mona insisted.

  “Miss Lisa, you told me that the very next day,” Ethan pointed out.

  “So? What did you do when I left?”

  “Besides mope?”

  “Ethan..” Mona hugged him again, “My deepest apologies.”

  “Why’d you leave?” Ethan asked. It was really starting to get awkward and I wasn’t the only one who felt this way.

  “Well this was nice meetin’ you but we gotta get goin’ if we wish to get there on time,” Eris said pulling Mona away.

  “Wait, can we take him with us? Please,” Mona pleaded.

  Chapter 6

  So we went on our way to see the red queen. Wait, wrong story. Then again red queen can describe her pretty well since she
has red eyes, but she’s not a queen. Okay fine, let’s try this again.

  So we went on our way to see the red witch. There. Better? Anyways.

  “Why are we walking there? Why not have Snowdrop use her key?” Gabriel asked.

  “If we did that then we would not have time to change,” Mona stated. Gabriel asked what I was thinking.

  “Change? Change for what?”

  “Well she’s still very much covered in blood and Mona and I aren’t goin’ in there dressed like this,” Eris said pointing to her cutoff jean shorts, gray belly shirt, brown plaid jacket, and black gloves with brown bands. Mona was wearing a plain black dress that ended just below the knee. Her sleeves were long but her shoulders were showing while two straps kept the dress up. I never noticed just how low the back was on that dress but it makes sense since she needed room for her wings.

  We all agreed that we would go to the nearest hotel and wait for Mona and Ethan to bring back what we need. So Eris, Gabriel and I sat in the room waiting.

  Eris laid on the bed while Gabriel paced back and forth, mumbling to himself. I sat on the opposite bed, cleaning my bow. A painful silence filled the room until Gabriel spoke up.

  “Um, so what’s up wit-”

  “Gabriel, shut up,” I said the same time Eris said,

  “Shut up, boy.” Neither one of us were pleased with him.

  “Well sorry for trying to start a conversation,” he said putting up his hands.

  “It’s not the fact that you tried it’s the fact that yer an intolerable asshole,” Eris muttered.

  “This coming from a black-eyed bitch who can’t even talk normal, I mean how hard is it for you to pronounce the g in coming?” he shot back.

  “Those are some big words comin’ from a fucktard like you,” Eris scoffed.

  “Don’t hurt yerself too much. You have the fucking IQ of a southern hillbilly’s incest sister. Next thing you know you’re gonna say ‘Y’all come back now, ya bitch,” he retorted, mocking her accent.

  “I’ll have you know that I know more than yer lil’ mind can handle. I have not been through hell and back to get insulted by the fucking peanut gallery. Oh, and I wouldn’t be such a bitch if you didn’t take every moment as a moment to make everyone around you feel like shit, you ungrateful bastard! I wish Mona had killed you when she had the chance,” Eris yelled before storming outside.

  “Was it something I said?” he said looking at me. All I could do was shake my head.

  “You can be a real jerk sometimes, Lassi,” I said before I headed out the door. I stood in the hallway with my back pressed against the cool door. My mind jumped from one idea to the next, always landing on the same strange feeling of loneliness. My thoughts were cut off when I saw Eris dragging Mona and Ethan behind her.

  “Found these two over there together,” Eris said letting them go and heading back inside with the box of things they brought. Mona was blushing and Ethan stared at the floor sheepishly.

  “What were you guys...wait, you know what, I don’t even want to know. Just get inside and get ready,” I sighed pointing to our room. They both ran off and went inside. What the hell is wrong with my group. Just as I headed inside Eris threw something at me.

  “Go get changed,” she said nodding towards one of the spare rooms. I went in and changed into what she gave me.

  It was a dress. I hate dresses. Oh well. I looked in the mirror and took a nice long look at the dress. A simple, white, strapless dress with a silver, silk band around my middle. It came with a silver silk shawl too. I thought for a minute before parting my hair and putting it into two braids. I took the braids, looped them around and pinned them to the back of my hair. Just when I thought I looked good, the one side of my bangs did what they always do. They fell down and rested just around my left eye.

  “Fuck it,” I sighed and walked out of the room. I saw that they all were dressed up too and just wow.

  Gabriel and Ethan both were dressed up in black tuxes. Gabriel wore a deep purple shirt and white tie under his while Ethan wore a white one and with a golden vest and a black tie.

  Mona wore a black dress with a dark blue lace pattern. There was light blue flowers just below her bust and on the straps on her shoulders. Her hair was put up in a small ponytail and had two blue barrettes holding back her hair on the right side.

  Eris wore a gypsy-style dress. The top was dark brown with puffy sleeves that hung on her arms and there was a black band just below her bust. The top layer of the skirt was a soft brown while the bottom layer was light brown. The shawl wrapped around her waist was as dark as her top. She had two golden necklaces on. One was short and had a small star on it while the other was long and had a moon on it. Her hair was put up into a tight bun while her bangs were still hung freely.

  “You guys look amazing,” was all I could think to say.

  “Awe thanks, hun. You look great yerself,” Eris replied.

  “Yes you look quite stunning,” Mona chimed in. The guys? They were gawking. Did I forget to mention that all of our dresses had low necks? Yeah...Gabriel was staring at Eris, because she had to be the tallest and probably the biggest in that area, while Ethan was staring at, you guessed it, Mona. I just rolled my eyes and threw my white combat boots back on.

  “So why are we all dressed up again?” I asked changing the subject.

  “Well, we cannot just walk in there demanding to see her. We would be kicked out,” Mona stated.

  “She has a party every other night for her whole kingdom as a way to make people forget that life sucks. It works too. So we’re goin’ to it tonight,” Eris added.

  “Yes, ‘cause we look like a completely normal bunch,” Gabriel muttered.

  “She lets anyone in as long as everyone is having fun,” Ethan shrugged.

  “So it’s decided. We’re going to a party,” I said walking towards the door.

  “One thing, though, we all need to get into little groups. Makes us seem a little more normal and a little less like we’re just here for one thin’. Mona and Ethan already said they were going together, big shocker there, which means one of us has to take him,” Eris said pointing towards Gabriel.

  “Hmmm...go with a bitchy Snowdrop or a black-eyed freak? Tough choice. I’d rather die,” He commented.

  “That can be arranged,” Eris said as I held her back.

  “Okay okay. I’ll go with Snowdrop,” he whined.

  “Oh hell no. I have to fucking share a race with you, I think that’s enough,” I shot.

  “I’ll go with him. Can’t guarantee he’ll still be alive when we get back,” Eris said freeing herself from my grip. Eris grabbed Gabriel by his arm and dragged him to the door.

  “What did he do to anger her so much?” Mona asked coming up behind me. I just shook my head.

  “What hasn’t he done?” I sighed and followed Eris outside. We all stood outside the door and waited while I put in my key. I heard the soft click and opened the door to find the white light of the tunnel offering to guide us to where we needed to go. We all stepped inside and walked towards the other end. None of us said anything. Eris was still pissed at Gabriel (could you blame her), Mona and Ethan were in their own little world (I’m pretty sure they are more than just ‘her and her servant’), and for the first time in my life I felt...alone. We walked out of the tunnel and into the cool night air.

  “Alright, first things first. Cerise, you need to find a partner,” Mona stated.

  “Who is going to just up and be my partner? I mean come on really,” I replied.

  “Well, miss, I know someone who could help, but his brother would have to come with,” Ethan put in.

  “You are not talking about him are you?” Mona asked.

  “Sorry, Miss Lisa but this is an emergency.”

  “Alright but just this once.”

  “I’ll be back,” he said before running off. Wow. What just happened? We all stood there waiting for him to come back. Well...Eris, Gabriel, and I were waiting
while Mona sat on the ground worrying about him.

  “What if he is dead?”

  “He left two minutes ago.”

  “What if he has been kidnapped?”

  “He left two minutes ago.”

  “What if he’s never coming back?”

  “He left three minutes ago.”

  “What if he-”

  “What if you shut up.”

  “My apologies. I shall be quiet.” She was silent for two minutes before…

  “What if he is dead?” All Eris could do was sigh. It went on like this for about an hour before Eris somehow turned Mona’s voice off. I have never been so thankful that Mona was a bot. Another hour passed by and even I started to worry. Mona looked like she was about to cry before Ethan finally came back with two boys.

  “Ladies, and boy, I would like you to meet Leo and Lander Harden,” Ethan said pointing to each of the boys. Leo was lanky, skinny, and childlike with messy light and dark green hair and soft red eyes. He had a piercing on his left eyebrow and on the side of his nose. Lander was tall, well built, and seemed quite cocky with golden hair that had a little black tuft in the front and was combed back and away from his deep red eyes. They both had matching blood red, leathery wings with a bone like curve at the top. The one difference between their eyes was the fact that you could see the white around Leo’s iris and that Lander had a scar that ran across his left eye. Lander walked over to me and shook my hand.