A Beating Heart GXG (G!P)

Ch 7: Crimson

Days went by and finally, it was Dion's turn to get inside the arena. She had been training for days and Rosaline had been feeding her twice secretly. For whatever reason, Rosaline found herself caring for Dion. And no, it wasn't in a romantic way. It was with purpose. She didn't know what it was but, she went with her gut feeling and that was to look after Dion.

Dion had gained a bit of a muscle in just a few days and she was much stronger than before. All she did was train and train in her room. She didn't have time to think about anything else. All she saw was Denise laying dead in her arms and that was all she needed. Rosaline was impressed with how quickly she gained her strength. The strong will of humans, She believed.

Dion walked out to the arena and there, she stood in the center ring, not stepping inside. Her eyes scanned everywhere around her, searching for that one pair of red eyes she hated. The arena was surrounded by vampires, some seated, some not. The King sat with his servants and guards but, Jemiah wasn't there with him.

One of the Guards finally called out her name.
"Dion Leeve, a 19-year-old, shall engage in combat against Samuel Rose, who is 27 years of age," he announced.

Soon after, a man walked out. He was bigger than Dion but she wasn't interested in him. He grabbed a weapon which was thrown into the arena by one of the spectators. It was a huge hammer, made of steel. The man picked it up on his shoulder and waited inside the ring for Dion. She finally acknowledged his presence. He was a buff ginger and had a beard with patches. She looked around and noticed a small knife, a rusted swiss knife on the ground.

She picked it up, which led to a roar of laughter, some calling her stupid and some amused at her. The King watched both of them intently. He needed to get stronger warriors and he didn't have time to waste.

Dion had a stern look on her face. She could feel Denise's soul with her; she was carrying Denise around her neck. The little Hematite stone represented her. She gripped tightly on the handle and walked towards the ginger.

Suddenly, a loud sound went off and that was the signal. "Fight!" the guard roared.

Samuel ran towards Dion, shouting while holding the hammer above his head. Dion ran towards him as well, holding the Swiss knife on her right hand. She could notice that he was moving heavily and even though he was running at full speed, he was slow.

Dion being smaller and faster, had the upper hand. As soon as he was about to slam the hammer down the Brunette's head, she ducked, sliding on the ground with her left knee as she swirled and slammed the knife down his left calf. Then, she stood behind the crouching man, both hands on his calf, groaning in pain.

Pathetic, Dion thought. A simple rusted knife, the size of the ginger's index finger made him groan in pain and the hammer was dropped on the ground, which was a grave mistake.

"You have no idea what true suffering feels like," Dion uttered, glaring at the man under her. The statement didn't miss the King's ears for he was watching her intently. She was the last to come out and they had already picked 10 other humans. He turned towards Rosaline, his trusted guard and noticed that she was already staring at what was happening. Her bright, golden eyes watched Dion pick up the hammer and slam it down Samuel's head.

The impact left the man struggling; he dropped down on the ground, warm blood flowing out of his smashed head and his body twitched violently. The vampires watched in hunger but, they weren't allowed to enter the arena. What a waste of blood, the King thought.

Dion then turned towards Him. He saw her properly for the first time. It was her first fight and the King felt it wasn't enough to determine how strong she was. Even though the man was bigger than her, he lacked in tactics. He wondered if she would've won if her opponent was trained adequately.

But, her eyes. They intrigued him. He saw nothing. Neither fear nor anger. Just nothing. All he saw was a vessel of a human body and he wanted to fill her with his venom. He wanted her in his army. Pure violent vigour to kill someone was what he needed. And that, was what he saw in her.

"I pick her," the King finally spoke. This made Rosaline nervous. She hasn't let Dion know that she was fighting for a place in his army of vampires. Dion looked confused and she finally turned towards Rosaline. The later woman avoided her sharp grey eyes and looked else where.

In the shadows, Jemiah stood there.
"Fucking cunt," he muttered. He didn't like that the King picked her. It meant that he won't be able to use her as a slave anymore. She was going to be one of them and with what he did to Denise, he knew he was facing a great threat. He glared at his associates, the three of them. "Keep an eye on her," he ordered.

Even though they were of equal status to him, he treated them as if they were lower and it didn't miss them. They agreed but in their cold hearts, they held vengeance.

Dion was grabbed by two of the King's guards and she was brought into another room. There, she met the humans who were chosen. They looked nervous and some were pacing in the room. Dion recognised a few of them. They looked strong and healthy for a blood bag.

"Denise was your cellmate, right?" a woman, who looked to be in her 30s, asked Dion, worriedly. She didn't reply and sat in the corner of the room, far from the woman. She didn't want to talk to them. Soon after, Rosaline entered the room and scanned for Dion. Her eyes landed on her's. Grey pair of eyes staring back at her with questions and Rosaline was nervous to answer them.

"Get in line," the vampire spoke, tearing her eyes away and watched them arrange themselves in a line. Dion stood at the last and they followed Rosaline to the King's chamber. As the brunette walked towards the chamber, her mind was filled with confusion. But, she wasn't nervous anymore. Whatever happens, she was determined to survive it.

The King watched his slaves walk in, the victors. He was sat in his seat and was watching them intently. He thought about who was going to turn them but atlast, he decided to be the one to do so. Being the Vampire who turns them, they won't be able to fight back or turn their back against him. He'd have control over them and they won't be able to challenge him, he thought.

"Chain them," he ordered. Most of them struggled in confusion. New borns were likely to be violent and chaotic. Given the King's royal blood, it'd become twice as worse. Dion didn't struggle. She stood there and watched the King on his seat. He had bright golden hair, his beard covering half his face but, his eyes stood out the most. They were the deepest shade of red.

One by one, he turned them and each screamed loudly in pain, twitching and falling down on the floor. It was as if they were set on fire, rolling on the ground and begging for water. Dion watched them and finally, she understood what was happening. He was turning them one by one, after picking out the strongest ones. She snarled at him as he called for her. She walked towards him and got down on her knees in front of his seat.

Anything for you, Denise. Dion closed her eyes and breathed out, relaxing her body. The King, even more amused with her, watched her for a moment. Finally, he grabbed her face, and moved it to the side to have access to her long neck. He leaned down and sunk his fangs deep down into her neck. She winced but held her screams in. She had only one thought in her mind and it was Denise's last moment.

The King then fed her blood with his venom;  her blood tried to fight against the foreign fluid but lost to it's raw strength. She suddenly fell down, temporarily losing her mobility. The cold, marble floor which was once white with golden streaks, was now stained with their blood. She struggled in pain, her body was heating up and she felt like her eyeballs would burst any time soon because of the pressure she was experiencing. She could physically feel her body changing, the high fever was dehydrating her body and she couldn't hold it in anymore. She screamed in pain.

Pain was all she felt. She saw the King's face, the golden haired vampire staring at her with a smirk. Dion's irises weren't grey anymore, they became crimson red. But she still had some grey flecks around her iris. A past. A history. A mark of her origin.

Despite her resilience, the pain persisted, leaving her helpless and overwhelmed. The world around her faded into a blur as she struggled to cope with the intensity of what she was experiencing.

All Dion could do was hold on and wait for it to pass, hoping that eventually, she would find some measure of peace and comfort. The King's demeaning face was what she saw before she passed out.

Out of the 11, only 8 survived and Dion was one of them.