[book one]
The game was simple: A contest comprised of three unique challenges, designed to test a human's strength physically and mentally, their personality compatibility, and their chance of survival.
The prize was excruciatingly tempting: The ch...
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HER MIND WAS flooded with a sense of worry and panic. In the small amount of time that she had spent trapped in the pod, she had grown somewhat accustomed to hearing his every thought. It was strange to not hear him, or to not feel his feelings. And she was also concerned about the effects that his prison might have on him. He had mentioned that werewolves relied heavily on their senses, and that the whole point of his torture chamber was to desensitize him.
Only a small amount of her brain focused on that, however.
The rest of Sophie was concerned about the Headmaster, who stood in front of her still. Another small part of her wondered whether he planned to kill her. Then, the moment she considered that, another part of her mind squished that idea. He wouldn't have changed her just to kill her. It would be such a waste of resources, she was sure.
She couldn't figure out what he wanted with her. And as two more seconds pressed on, she decided to answer.
"I'm not sure," she said. Her voice was soft. It sounded strange to her own ears, more melodious. It didn't crack like she had expected it to.
The Headmaster nodded. "I still remember the first time I opened my eyes as a vampire. It's a very surreal experience."
Sophie looked around. Her eyesight had improved, a lot. Specs of dust floated on invisible winds, dancing around in the air. It seemed to cluster mostly around the tops of the machinery that surrounded them and coated the edges of the floor in a thin coat of fuzzy gray. The light above her head flickered for a brief moment, the strands of wire inside frayed with age. More lights blinked at the corners of her vision --bright green and red buttons attached to sheets of metal and dully glowing screens that hid the walls.
Her mind seemed very different as well. She realized that she could process her thoughts faster, and it gave her even more time to think.
Headmaster watched her. His expression seemed to soften a bit. It didn't take long for her to notice the hardness that remained in his eyes. "Are you thirsty yet?" he asked.
"No," she answered immediately. She didn't want to even think about that.
But the moment her mind registered his words, the thirst became all that she could think about. Her throat hurt. It burned. It was like she'd swallowed the sun.
He seemed to sense her discomfort, and moved toward a metal window behind him. His movements were quicker, less cautious. Headmaster jerked the window open to reveal a small storage compartment built into the wall. It was filled with small bags of dark liquid.
The second Sophie's eyes fell upon the bags, her mouth started to water.
Her body automatically bolted forward and, within seconds, she found herself standing in front of the compartment. Her hand darted out and snatched up a bag. It sloshed in her hand. She immediately brought it to her mouth, tearing her teeth into the top of it. Headmaster watched her quietly as she drowned the darkened liquid and then grabbed another bag.
It was thicker than she expected, and cold. A small part of her mind knew that blood was meant to be warm, and was revolted. It was like eating cinnamon rolls cold; it was not as good, but still edible.
It was after Sophie had demolished three more bags that the Headmaster slammed the window shut. When he did, her body tensed at the loud sound and she froze. An empty bag hung from her mouth, its end in tatters. His gaze remained focused on her face, his expression warm. "I believe you have had enough," he announced. He flashed a small smile. "I wouldn't recommend drinking more than five bags at a time."
Sophie swallowed thickly. The substance still lingered in her mouth, caught in all the crevices. She swallowed several more times, terrified that her voice would come out weird.
"Where am I?" she asked.
He smiled at her again. "This is an underground room of the castle. Think of it like an emergency wing of a hospital, just it is only used for members of the Night Class. It is here where our kind is treated for life-threatening wounds."
Sophie lifted a hand and touched the hollow of her throat. The skin there was smooth, not at all the jagged flesh she remembered. She gulped and looked around at the other pods.
"What about Eli?" The question came out before she could stop herself.
A sense of panic flooded through her, demolishing the rest of her thoughts. She looked around at all of the different pods. None of them held the familiar face that she was looking for. All of them were pretty much empty, in fact.
Her gaze happened to flit back toward the Headmaster at just the right time, and she caught the last second of his initial reaction. His eyes had widened with shock, and his lips had tightened. Then before she could blink, he seemed to have recovered. His lips stretched around a worried frown, and his gaze hardened. "Eli is dead, my dear," he said.
She knew immediately that the Headmaster was lying.
There was a small something inside of her that just knew Eli was alive. It was a faint feeling that tainted the back of her mind. Eli was most definitely still alive.
Sophie shook her head, frowning, and looked around again. "I guess I forgot about that," she said, off-handed. It was a sorry attempt to play it off but she didn't need the Headmaster to think she didn't believe him.
To her relief, he seemed to buy into it. The Headmaster nodded, and his expression softened again. "I know it's been quite a few days for you, my dear. Why don't we move to a more comfortable room? There we can discuss our next course of action."
"Okay," she said.
He led her toward a metal door, which opened into an unfamiliar stone hallway. Sophie paused and took one last look around, and attempted to commit everything in the room to her memory.
She decided that she might need that information again sometime.
Sophie followed Headmaster down the hall, to the right several times, and up a massive marble staircase. Then she found herself back in his office, seated in a cushioned chair in front of his desk. He took a seat behind the desk and rested his elbows against the edge of the table. His fingers steepled in front of his face, his expression thoughtful.
When she was settled, and a small moment of silence passed between them, the Headmaster spoke.
"Did Eli ever mention anything about a war to you, my dear Sophie?"
