Page 125 of In Between Darkness
As my blood ebbs away, a chilling numbness creeps through my veins, each beat of my heart fading like an echo. My limbs feel impossibly heavy, as if they are weighed down by stones, my strength evaporating with each passing moment.
“That will be enough. Bring me the blood and unhand the girl.” Darryn’s voice bleeds into the room via some sort of speaker, but my vision is blurred, the world morphing into indistinct shapes and smudges as my eyes surrender to the emptiness.
“Asha, I know you are tired.”
My eyelids feel heavy like iron sheets, and I struggle to lift them. An image of a woman springs to my mind. At first, I see her in glimpses — the dimple when she smiles, a curl ofauburn hair, the sound of her joyous laughter bringing life to the darkness. “My little girl, you have to find the strength within.”
Like a zap of lightning, her voice brings back memories I didn’t know I had. A life I have no recollection of living. Her voice is like a bed of soft silk soothing my aching body.
“Mum?” I mutter barely a whisper, the veil of black still dominating my view.
“Yes, my sweet Asha.” Her voice seeps through the cold cracks of my mind.
“Mum… I’m sorry. I know I’m not what you wanted me to be.” I sob, unable to move my limbs.
“Asha, you are more wonderful than I could’ve ever imagined.” She smiles, and I see her dimple again, my tears still rolling down my cheeks.
“But I failed you. I am everything you and Dad fought hard for… And I have no fight left in me.”
Each tear falls with the weight of my supposed destiny, my shoulders finally giving in to the strain of a hundred expectations.
“You have not failed me, Asha. My faith in you is everlasting.” I see her clear as day, like she is standing here with me. “They may have the power of sun or moon… but you have that and a million stars.”
Her words warm me, like my bones have been frozen for a hundred years and are finally thawing out. “For every star that burns out, another is born - you may be burnt out now, but a thousand flames lie dormant within you.”
I cling to my mother’s words as they echo throughout my mind, and I am transported to that place again. Where it all began. Oriah’s safe haven. The place of a thousand stars. My hands and feet are unburdened and light as a feather, defying gravity once again.
‘Come here, child.’
I hear Oriah’s voice, and my body is pulled towards it. This is it. I must be dead. A sense of peace washes over me as I get lost in the serenity of the waves. My body is guided like a puppet on strings towards a bright star that stands out amongst the rest. The whole world quietens, chaos nullified in the vast depths of this abyss. Until it stands before me, staring back at me, so bright I’m sure my eyes will burn out. But they don’t. The light conjures me closer until I am only an inch away. A mere ant at the foot of a spectacular mountain. Its fiery centre calls me to touch it, my eyes hypnotised by its beauty. I surrender to its calling, reaching my finger out to let it consume me.
In one swift motion, I am propelled back into the ether, the light becoming smaller as I drift further away. The stars that surround me move so slowly, like they are stuck in time. My head tilts back as I let the sensation indulge me, my arms hanging freely by my side, not resisting. The world quickens again, and I see my life flash before my eyes all at once. My mum, the father who raised me. Luca. Nala. Oriah. River and Ryder. And then… nothing.
Just darkness.
Until the stars blink back to life one by one, instilling a shiver down my spine. Not a cold one. A shiver that tickles my skin gently, a reassurance, like a passed loved one touching your shoulder. One that you always knew was there, watching over you, but you never realised until this moment.
The stars, like a kaleidoscope, shimmer and intertwine as they race towards me. My heart is like a magnet, pulling them closer and closer until we collide. A million sparks ignite a fire within me. A supernatural ember that not even an ocean can put out. An undying blaze. My limbs flare with a golden glow, a light brighter than any star that defeats the darkness like it was neverthere. My bones rejoice and rejuvenate as the fire roars within me. Untamed. And hungry.
My eyes open fast, and I jump to my feet. I am back in the room that devoured me of all hope. Yet now I stand hopeful. My Gifts shine brightly in my hands like beacons in the night. The door swings open again.
“T-that’s impossible.” The cold voice of Darryn seeps through the speaker again, and my anger returns.
“Screw you,” I spit at him, hoping he walks through the door.
My body feels stronger than it ever has before, and I want him to suffer for what he has done, but he has Nala, and I can’t risk anything happening to her. He doesn’t walk through the door. Ryder does. Willingly. And the door is firmly shut behind him. I race over to him, my heart thumping a thousand beats per minute. My body aches for him, for his touch, to be held like he did before. But his stare is different; a purple ring envelopes his irises.
“Get away from me, Asha.”
He steps back, panting uncontrollably and shying from my touch. Any softness in his features is lost, a series of sharp lines and tensed muscles. His jaw is wound tightly, and his veins in his forehead and neck bulge slightly under his skin.
“Ryder, what’s happening?” I ask, examining him with my eyes. “Did they get you?”
I take another step closer.
“GET AWAY FROM ME!” He snarls like an animal that should be caged up, and the fear I felt earlier creeps back into my bones. “They injected me… You have to kill me, Asha.” His words fight through gritted teeth, and his fists clench tightly.
“Don’t be silly. You can fight this.”
