Part 2
February 1907 A.D.
Serbia
Lydia became acutely aware of a severe and sharp pain surge through her body; her eyes blinked open as she finally regained consciousness; the last thing she remembered was an explosion before everything had gone dark; with her awareness returning, she noticed someone looking down at her, she had no idea who it was, she knew what Damir looked like, and she knows she couldn’t forget the face of the ‘Monk’ that trained her; but this face, no; she wasn’t sure who this was, once everything had processed in her head, she made an immediate move; despite her body screaming at her not to move; despite the agony she felt, she pushed her right hand upwards quickly, her fingers quickly gripped around the throat of the man leaning over her, staring down at her; she gripped tightly, and she felt his hand suddenly grab around her wrist.
She was in severe pain, and when his fingers wrapped around her wrist, it sent a surge of pain racing through her; she winced and felt her grip slacken as the man above her simply pulled her hand away “È sveglia?” a feminine voice asked; Lydia recognised it as Italian, and she shifted her gaze, glancing over to see someone approaching, blinking she stared at the girl, she looked very similar to her, together, they could be mistake as twins; the only indicator being Lydia was from Britain and this girl, she was Italian
“Yes” the man said after a moment of silence, he was clearly irritated, but his accent, that sounded as though he was from the Great Qing; Lydia raised her eyebrow as she looked at him carefully “Tell her mother” the Chinese Gentlemen said
“Where am I?” Lydia questioned, she was wary of the individual she had never seen before; but if her mother was nearby, he had to at least be trustworthy
“Still in Serbia” the man answered, his gaze had now moved away from Lydia as he wandered away; it was only a moment later when Cathryn came rushing in; the Italian stood by the door as Cathryn quickly made her way to Lydia
“Your finally awake” Cathryn kneeled down by the bedside, looking at Lydia carefully, she could see the worry present in her mothers eyes; a subtle gesture though caused Cathryn to look away and towards the stranger, before returning her attention back to Lydia “That is Xian”
“Your daughter is a unstable” Xian comments; Cathryn raised her eyebrow with a confused expression as she looked towards him “Who the hell grabs someone by the throat when they wake up” Cathryn looked to Lydia a moment
“I thought he was a threat” Lydia said quickly
“What have you and that Monk been teaching her?” Xian questioned
“You can’t blame her Xian; if you felt you was under threat, you’d likely react the same” Cathryn says
“We need to get out of here before the Cultists come back; and she needs proper medical attention” Xian comments, gesturing towards Lydia “That guide you was with is still near, he’s watching for signs we are still here; so, now that she is awake, let us leave, we can’t linger anymore”
“She isn’t going to be capable of travelling” Cathryn retorts
“Doesn’t matter; carry her, we need to go, and go now” Xian stated firmly before walking from the room; Cathryn looked to her confused daughter
“There isn’t time to explain; we need to get moving” Cathryn said gently, Lydia simply nodded
By the time the group had moved out into the darkness; Lydia clung to her mothers back, she could only feel the pulsating pain rushing through her body, but as she glanced around, it looked as though the land had been sucked dry of all life, its uneven terrain; where they found themselves stood hollow, it was like a warzone, clearly something had happened during her period of unconsciousness; under the charcoal sky, the group had begun to get moving.
Lydia was very aware of the uncomfortableness of her body with the pain she could feel, she was pale, with streaks of blood and dirt present on her; there had been no time to get her cleaned up, and her clothing bore damage from the explosion she had been caught by; her eyes simply showed her confusion, she had no idea what was happening or what had gone on since the explosion.
Hearing of Toma though; their guide, had however sparked the fire of her anger, she wanted to find him, his trap had nearly cost her, her life; and if it had nearly killed her, did it also nearly kill her mother?; this thought kept running through her mind, it only made her more angry, there was a rage building slowly; knowing Toma was searching for them, she started hoping they may have a chance to kill him.
Only a day would pass before the group would make any headway in a new direction; but the Cultists were closing in, Toma clearly had them under observation; when the group found somewhere to rest up, Lydia looked to the Italian girl as she came to sit beside her, she’d finally learnt that this girl was called; Norina, and whenever she said anything; Lydia would stare blankly due to having no clue what she was saying.
Attempting to rest though, it wouldn’t come easy, her pain made it uncomfortable to fall asleep at all, but when she finally did, that is when she heard a voice; it was a familiar voice, she recognised it as the same voice that had once urged her on; it was the same voice that told her to leave her family home, this time; this voice was urging her to take action on something different; as she lay sleeping, she was catching glimpses in her dream-like state of a strange ruined building; she was sure she recognised it from somewhere that they had just recently passed by; opening her eyes, she slowly sat up, the surge of pain quickly followed.
Her eyes scanned the surrounding area quickly before she forced herself to move, while the group was resting, she managed to sneak off on her own despite how much pain she could feel running through her body.
The ruined building stood atop of a hill; its silhouette looming above the shrub-dotted plains like an ominous sentinel; it had once been a modest estate, now though its cracked walls and collapsed roof spoke of a long abandoned life succumbing to decay; moss trailed across its surfaces like veins on a decaying corpse.
Shadows rolled down its corridors, pooling in the gaping windows like silent predators; her dream and that strange voice had led her right to him.
As she trudged forward, every movement set off her injuries; and there was a gnawing sense of unearthly wrongness that bled through the air; it wasn’t just the building, the silence was too perfect; the kind that pressed against your ears and crawled beneath your skin.
Nature itself seemed to stop breathing in this place, Lydia didn’t care; she was being driven forwards by an unseen force.
As she reached the main entrance; a splintered door leaning limply on one hinge; her trembling hand clutched a knife; it was dull, but would still be sharp enough for the purpose she intended it for; with what strength and determination she had, she pushed her way inside of the building.
The interior was in an even worse state than its exterior; dust choked the damp air, and the wooden floors creaked under foot; water dripped from unseen cracks onto the stone walls, dripping like the ticking of a morbid clock.
Stairs spiralled upwards, the railings warped and rotting; broken furniture lay scattered, overturned as though a tempest had rampaged through. Cobwebs hung like torn funeral veils across every inch.
Lydia halted, her breath catching as a faint, muffled sound reached her ears – pacing footsteps, erratic and nervous; they came from above her; Toma, a faint smile curled her lips, though it tugged painfully at the cuts that covered her face, she followed the sounds of movement.
Step by agonising step, Lydia ascended the staircase, the warped wood wailing in protest; every holt hobbled her, but she kept pushing, clutching the banister with her left hand; darkness swallowed her up as she reached the second floor, pale shafts of weak moonlight filtered through the cracks, but they did little to illuminate the hallway she now found herself in.
The pacing had ceased “Toma” she said, her voice was low, venomous; it broke the oppressive silence “I know you’re hear”
The words echoed, bouncing off the crumbling walls; the damp air seemed to reach out and press against her throat.
The only response was a faint rustle of movement from a room at the far end of the corridor; she tightened her grip on the knife, moving forwards she felt the shallow puddles on the warped floor splash.
As she approached the doorway, a shadow darted across her peripheral vision, she spun around; her heart pounding, but she saw nothing; the atmosphere was stifling now, every breath scraping her chest, something about the building seemed alive; it was as if it was watching, waiting; feeding on her hatred.
Finally she reached the doorway; inside was chaos – a half destroyed office with the remains of a broke desk and toppled shelves, old books scattered like leaves; and there was Toma; the man she recognised as their guide; he seemed shocked she had found him.
“You nearly killed me with that ambush” Lydia said calmly “And if you nearly killed me; that means you nearly killed my mum” she began moving towards him; the strange look that he could see in her eyes though terrified Toma as he backed away from her advancement “I am going to pay you back for that” she told him before suddenly lunging forwards; she felt the surge of pain flood her body as she closed the gap between them in a quick lunge
Lydia’s injuries however were giving her an extreme hinderance, it has clearly taken her all the effort to just to track him down; and despite her fast movement making him stumble back, he only needed to reposition himself to create some distance again; though as he turned to make an escape, he found himself facing Xian.
Xian had observed and watched Lydia, and when she had snuck off, he followed her to make sure she was safe for whatever it was she was intending; now though, finding that it was Toma she was searching for; he has just stopped him from escaping “Hello Toma” he said with a grin; raising a revolver up, he pulled the trigger, the loud bang rang out, it echoed out in the silence, it would certainly attract attention from any Cultist nearby
Lydia watched as Toma’s body hit the ground before her eyes returned to Xian; he quickly made his way forwards, and with a quick movement, scooped her up “We best get a move on before anyone comes looking” he tells her before turning to leave, any Cultist nearby would soon be converging onto the ruined building and the first thing that they would discover, would be Toma’s deceased body
Written By: Westley H.
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