We’ve got a brand new piece written by Salama Alharmoodi titled “The History of Star Crossed Lovers” We hope you enjoy it ^^

She was formally known as a hybrid; half demon and half human. Though her name still remained, she has become a different person. Helena once lived in a world that is not known to us. It was world where myths, legends, and ancient kings continue to exist.

Memories of those times were lost in a river she drowned in. It took her away from home, transformed her, and left her wandering in foreign realms like many others.

After a good talk with Razor she left home along with the rest, only to find the stench of death around the corner of her house. Louis was standing at her front door with another list of people they needed to hunt. He was a man with hollow eyes and a misshapen body.

There were no words spoken between them. He merely nodded then limped into the darkness. She took a look at the list, there were some she didn’t know and needed research. She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled before unlocking her house and entering inside.

She placed the paper inside her drawer and laid in her bed. She closed her eyes and started searching through her mind. She always felt like there was some void hidden inside of her. Her feeling of emptiness comes with no cure and she often wonders what was in that void before it disappeared.

It was four am when her storm of thoughts settled down as she drifted to sleep.

Now, let me tell you her story

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Is this what Death feels like?

Her eyes suddenly failed her as her mind took off spinning. She could no longer make sense of what was happening around her. All she could remember that her emotions took control. Her body took advantage of her raging emotions and it finally showed the world how truly powerful the Ezikel bloodline is. Her iris, now slowly drifting into endless circular motion, although she was only half human her other lineage of blood combined powers demons crave and hunt. However, power always comes at a cost. Her cells were painfully splitting, giving her a sensation of being burned alive.

Her eyes would hypnotize whoever sees them directly. They would often lose themselves in whatever realm she set up for. Either driving them mad, or making them believe that their friends are in fact, mortal enemies. The pain was driving her at the point of her insanity, her hands shook as she moved them into a circular motion, creating a small energy ball than she then released upon her enemies.

She was now facing her worst fear. She was falling. Above her she could see a blurry chaos. She heard someone desperately calling her name.

“Xaviar?” she mumbled underneath her breath. Her head smashed into the abyss below. It sent another shock of pain, leaving her dazed. Her head was pounding, she could no longer breathe of the pain. There was no light to greet her in her death.

Just blurry images and a warm embrace.

“She’s dead!”

 “Of course she’s dead! Her skull is crushed from the blow! Her heart has been ripped apart!”

That’s right. Hunters were after me. 

 

As she exhaled, she saw bubbles escaping above. This was Lethe, a river that makes those who drink, or drown in it forget.

The Furies stood beside her, quarrelling on Helena’s dead body. Their reflections were beautiful. They looked young, with bright eyes, and blonde locks gently placed on their shoulders. One of them glanced at her, and caught Helena blink. That’s when their true image was revealed. They were old, with misshapen bodies and twisted fingers reaching for her. One of the Furies pulled Helena from the hair.

“She’s alive!” she exclaimed.

The other two sisters took a good look at Helena. Her body was broken in so many ways. Her chest deeply wounded, her rib cage was shattered and one of the enemies managed to almost cut her heart into half. According to the sisters the back of her head was completely smashed from the fall.

She was terrified.

A man was standing in the darkness watching the sisters. He moved closer when the Furies took note of his presence. They were curious for his reason being here. He quietly approached; he stood in front of the second sister that was holding Helena’s from her hair. He gently removed her from the woman’s grasp.

He wrapped his arms around her, and wept.

The three sisters watched Xaviar as he wept; he cradled Helena muttering apologies over and over again.

She could not speak; her senses were failing her again. She was only to wrap her fingers around her arm. She closed her eyes.

“You shouldn’t have come with me. You should have been waiting for me.”

“It was either me or you,” she thought.

“Look what your stubbornness led to! Look at you! Oh look at you!”

His grief was much deeper than words could describe. He could no longer speak, but have left his scream echo in the darkness of Lethe. She was gone.

To the oldest Fury, this was the mourning of star-crossed lovers.

The youngest of them took his hands, removing Helena’s body from him. He stared at them. He then tilted his head downwards.

“Bring her back to me.” He pleaded.

“She’s dead, but we can avenge for you,” answered the middle sister

“I can avenge for myself, bring her back to me!” he bitterly replied.

The oldest remained quiet, she pitied the man. She has never had a demon on his knees pleading.

“I will fix her, but she will not be yours to love,”

Xaviar lifted his head towards the eldest. He was not looking for that answer. He learned to love Helena truly. He saved her once when they first crossed paths, and when she attempted to return her favor; she lost her life.  The girl he thought was an arrogant noble was in fact a fragile, compassionate person. He loved that about her, and he would have traded his soul for hers.

“I will bring her to another realm, she will be born again. She will be given another chance to live. Either way, this river will make you forget that you’ve once crossed paths. She will not matter to you anymore.”

He suddenly got up, grabbing the eldest from the throat. The other two sisters quickly responded. The youngest dropped Helena as the middle sister moved the river back into motion. The eldest managed to free herself from Xaviar’s grip as he drowned in the murky waters of Lethe.

“You’ll forget her!” she screeched into the murky waters. She turned towards the shadows.

“Louis!” she exclaimed

A figure from the darkness appeared. He picked up Helena gently, removing her bangs from her face.

“I’ll take her with me, and she’ll be under our command.”

Louis and the two other sisters worked on changing Helena’s features. She was now much paler than she was as a demon. Her brown eyes remained, but he rest of her features changed.

The oldest reunited with the two other sisters.

“I’ll be waiting on the other side,” said Louis.

The women moved their arms into a strange motion. Helena’s body was lifted into the river. One of the sisters set the river back into motion. The waters will fill her lungs and she will forget.

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Helena awakened from her sleep terrified. She quickly bit her hand before having another panic attack. That horrible feeling of drowning was haunting her dreams again. She could not breathe, she could not see. It was just darkness along with the sensation of suffocation. She wept as she bit harder on her hand.

Was it the pain from the bite, or was it that void that was killing her?

She didn’t know.

 

Author: Salama Alharmoodi