Return Pt. 1

The blade of the woman's sword froze, its razor sharp edge a fraction of a hair on the skin of Cress's forehead. A thin line of blood trickled from the paper cut deep wound into Cress's hazel eyes, though she didn't dare to blink, even as the salty fluid stung her eyes. Even her heart seemed frozen.

"What did you do," the woman demanded. Her voice was like a gentle song sung over a raging storm and if Cress hadn't been close to pissing herself in fear, she would have found it alluring.

She was easily over six feet tall and stared down at Cress with narrowed jade eyes that looked sharper than the sword pressed against Cress's skin. They were slightly wide-set, but not spaced enough to look unnatural, unlike the woman's eyebrows which were exceptionally long and thin. Above each brow she had a pair of short lines just as thin as her brows. She had wavy, chocolate brown hair with marshmallow white ends that flowed behind her like a cape, perfectly complimenting her sun-kissed golden brown skin.

"I-I didn't do anything," Cress stammered, careful not to let her mouth move enough to rock her head in any way. Knowing the answer wouldn't satisfy the woman, she glanced around only to realize she was sitting in the alley with her back pinned against the brick wall. It was daylight and judging by the hot sun hanging above them, around midday.

"Liar! Now reveal the sorcery you used, lest I dismember you limb from limb and string you up for the vultures!"

"I didn't!" Cress cried in desperation, accidentally flinching. The sudden jerk dug the woman's blade deeper into her forehead and it took all of Cress's energy to keep still. Then, to her surprise, the woman withdrew the weapon from Cress's head.

"I'll give you one last chance, human. Tell me what sorcery you've cast and I may—"

*HONK*

The woman's body jumped at the sound of the blaring car horn and her eyes, just moments ago filled with fiery blood thirst, widened in panic… as well as six other eyes above them.

A new type of fear strangled Cress and she didn't even bother holding back her banshee-like scream. Her frozen body moved on its own, forcing her to scramble away from the distracted woman. Rough pavement scraped her already exposed knees, small pebbles cutting through her skin and leaving deep gashes. She tripped, sending her skidding across the ground face first, but she didn't care. It didn't matter. Pain, breathing, destination, none of it mattered; she just had to get away from that woman.

She didn't even notice the people staring at her as she ran into the street like a tweaked out crackhead, shrieking hysterically in her filthy, ragged clothes. Someone may have tried to help her, but if they did she didn't know. Her lizard brain had taken full control and all she could do was flee, even though she could barely stand before.

"Home. Home. Home."

The word repeated infinitely in Cress's mind and it was her only somewhat human thought. She couldn't feel anything, even as she tripped at least a dozen more times, tearing up her skin like a biker in a motorcycle accident. Her vision had tunneled, her peripheral filled with the same skittering monsters she had seen her entire life, but now she saw the woman's eight giant green eyes peering through the swarm.

It was only by the grace of God that Cress made it back to her condo building. She was bruised and battered, bleeding from almost every inch of her body. Her chest burned like a raging bonfire, cooking her lungs till they were ready to burst. Her sweat drenched skin was flushed bright red and by the time she arrived at her front door she was swaying on her feet.

Brushing cobweb strands of brown hair from her sticky face, Cress tried to enter the code to her front door, but the touch pad refused to recognize her clammy red-stained finger. Her chest heaved as she fumbled in her purse trying to find her keys until she finally ripped it off, dumping it unceremoniously onto the ground. Makeup, pens, and other random objects clattered at her feet along, though all she cared about was the jingling key ring. She tried to jam the key into the lock several times before she was forced to use both hands to keep it steady enough to open the door.

The walls shook as the heavy metal door slammed behind Cress and she quickly re-locked, chained, and wedged the door shut while also barricading it with her body as she slumped to the floor.

"Can't… Breathe…" Cress said, gasping for air that refused to come. Now that she was home, a semblance of rationale had returned. It wasn't much, but it was enough for her instincts to guide her through the routine she always followed when having a panic attack.

Blood dripped onto the tile floor with each exhausted step Cress took, along with a long crimson streak that followed behind her hand on the wall. Thankfully, the condo wasn't particularly large even though it had three bedrooms and she quickly made it to the master bathroom where she kept a basket of medication. With the last of her energy, she managed to shut and lock the door behind her and she dragged the basket with her to the bathtub before collapsing inside it.

"Mom…" she muttered, barely conscious. Her arm flopped around the edge of the tub for the phone that she had unwittingly left in the hallway and after realizing it was nowhere to be found, she broke down sobbing.

"I need her," she begged into the empty room between choked sobs. Her throat was tight and it took everything she had left to swallow a handful of pills. She was able to turn the shower on with her foot though she didn't have it in her to adjust the temperature, leaving her in a spray of lukewarm water.

It didn't take long for the adrenaline and shock to wear off and the medication to take effect and Cress almost wished it hadn't. All the pain and exhaustion that had been at bay hit her like a train and tears of terror metamorphosed into tears of agony.

"His head was gone," Cress thought as she absently picked the pebbles embedded in her palm from her hand. "They all died for me to get away… To warn… I don't even know. And that woman. Can I even call her that? She's here. In this world. She won't find me will she?"

Though she'd managed to adjust the temperature of her shower once she'd calmed down, a cold shiver still ran through Cress's body. No matter how many doors she locked, or how many people tried to protect her, nothing would be able to stop that creature. Even flames hot enough to glass stone hadn't been enough to do anything but burn away her cloak.

Cress leaned out of the bathtub to the toilet and gagged as she pictured the woman's dark silhouette in Mia's flames. Was there anything in the modern world that could stop her? Maybe the military could, but she had her doubts. It wouldn't have surprised Cress if that monster was able to destroy a tank.

"I need to wrap all these wounds. Lots of them are going to need stitches, but thankfully none are too deep. I want to call Mom, too. Shit… My phone is in the hall with my purse. But maybe it's better if I don't call, it might just put her in danger. That monster might go after anyone I turn to for help… I should have just let her kill me."