***
Wake up!
Why, it was that obnoxious voice again. Here she was, flying on the top of the world, having the time of her life, all worries gone. And yet it seemed whenever she found herself content, the voice interrupted, determined to make her otherwise. Could it not find anyone else to bother?
I would love to, the voice replied sarcastically. Someone else might have the sense to listen to me.
Sense? All the voice spewed was nonsense!
You know that’s a lie, the voice replied. I was right before, now, wasn’t I? And who didn’t listen?
The old memory made her freeze. The voice was right, it had been correct that last time. She had made a mistake, and had…well, nearly gotten them both killed. Still, she didn’t want to wake up. She was having too much fun.
Oh, no, the voice yelled. We are not starting this again! Do not go on thinking like that! The last time you did, it didn’t get you anything.
Perhaps not. Her happy, blissful state did make it hard for her to think anything out. But sometimes it was so nice not to have to solve any problems. So sweet to—
Her thoughts were interrupted by a strange sensation. It felt as though numerous bugs were crawling over her skin. She screamed, but when she went to swat at the creatures, there wasn’t anything there. Each movement she made seemed to make her more tired and heavier, until she began to sink down to the world below her.
Oh, no, the voice whispered. It’s happening! Wake up, before…
The voice drifted away into an eerie silence. All of a sudden, Kiethara couldn’t feel its presence any more. That wasn’t right. No! She shouted over and over again in her had for the voice, but there was no reply. Only silence.
She started kicking and thrashing in the air, but it was as if some invisible force was holding her down. In the far corner of her mind, consciousness was lying there. She retreated into that corner, reaching…
Kiethara’s eyes snapped open. What she saw made her think that she was still dreaming.
She was surrounded by four men. They all looked the same, with tan skin and dark hair. There were two positioned on either side of her hammock, and two of them—one on her right and one on her left—were holding her down. With a jolt, she realized she was thrashing in her hammock as she had been in her dream, but it was no use. They were stronger than her.
One of the men stood a few feet back. He looked very young, hovering between the age of a boy and the age of a man. His face was smooth and his curly black hair fell over his forehead and almost hid his alarmingly dark green eyes. They held none of the warmth that Navadar’s eyes had, only remoteness and…could there be a tad bit of pity in them? He looked oddly out of place, as though he didn’t want to be here.
The other man to her left was young also, but not as young as the other boy. He looked to be twenty, while the other could barely pass for eighteen. This man’s dark hair was cropped brutally short and his eyes were a watery brown. Stubble grew on his chin, and his clothes matched the raggedy of the others.
There were two men to her right. Both could be honestly labeled as men, for they appeared to be at least in their late thirties. One of them was holding her down as well, and he had a bushy, bramble-filled beard with matching hair that fell to his shoulders.
The last man was obviously the leader of the group. His face was cleanly shaved, his hair sleek, and a rich, silk outfit fitted his lean frame. His brown eyes were uncaring and arrogant.
She observed all this in a matter of seconds, but none of this was as alarming as the next thing she saw.
The leader was holding up a golden necklace. The chain was thick, the gold twisting down around to carry a heavy entity embedded in the center.
It was a large, black jewel. The jewel was remarkably beautiful, but not in the ordinary way. No, it was dangerously and devastatingly handsome. Even though it was held high in the morning sunlight, it did not sparkle; instead, it seemed to be emitting a dull glow from inside itself. And Kiethara knew why it glowed.
From the moment she had laid her eyes on it, a dreadful, cold terror had seized her heart inexplicably. The instinct inside her reared like a frightened horse, screaming at her to get away from it. Nothing, not even death, was worse than what lay before her. This was her worst enemy; this was her nightmare. From the moment she laid eyes on it, she knew exactly what it was, and what it was doing.
The accursed gem in front of her was slowly glowing brighter and brighter, while the crystals in her bracelets were becoming dimmer and dimmer. While the light inside the black brightened leisurely, the crystals in her bracelets became duller by the smallest degree with every passing second. She was growing weaker.
For it was stealing her magic.
It sucked her power down greedily, bluntly, with no sense of remorse or pity. It wanted nothing more than for her to be powerless, empty…
Drained.
Screaming, she thrashed again, her back arching in effort, but the men held on to her tightly. Despite her hammock swinging unsteadily beneath them, despite her flailing limbs, they managed to hang on.
The man holding the crystal said something Kiethara did not understand. He sighed impatiently and then started over again.
“Stop!” he ordered in a thick accent and, for some reason beyond her, she did.
The man turned to the youngest member. “Boy! What are you waiting for, eh? Do it now!”
The boy rushed forward at the reprimand. He looked even younger with the fresh fear and anxiety in his eyes.
Kiethara noticed that he held a dirty rag in his hand. Without a second of hesitation, he reached down and pressed it forcefully over her nose and mouth.
The boy put his other hand on the back of her head in order to restrain her as the wet rag blocked all of her airways. Without thinking twice about it she opened her mouth to scream, sucking in the thick aroma of the rag, burning her throat. Her vision blurred, sounds muffled, her body seemed to go numb…
She finally, inevitably, lost consciousness.