EDEN (Completed) (EDEN Series Book 1)

Chapter 27

I awaken to the soft dribble of light rain gently massaging my entire body as I lie, stationary, with my eyes closed. A calmness rushes over me as I seem to feel each droplet fall onto a different part of my body. The wind whirs softly, bringing a placid mood to the air. I would stay here forever if I could, submerged in euphoria, forgetting the troubles that are tarnishing any hope I have left in this world. The scent of fresh rain and flowers fade in unison with my eyes opening. I lift my arms to see stains of red liquid rolling off my skin. Is this blood? I start to tremble at the thought of blood raining from the sky above. A familiar setting surrounds me. A field of Withered, black roses as far as the eye can see, all accompanied by drops of scarlet emphasizing the darkness of the petals. I scan my surroundings, to find her, still picking the decaying roses. Eden turns to me, and we lock eyes, her head cocked to the side, smiling menacingly. I stand and turn away from her, only to find her now standing to my side, a few feet away. She has a rose in her hand. It's clearly withered and dead, but she takes a whiff of it, anyway.

"I almost forgot how pathetic you were, how pathetic you're making us look," she says, placing the flower in her hair. "Your time is up."

"You can't have me!" I scream.

"I'm no longer asking; I'm telling."

She giggles, softly, reaching down to grab another flower. I can feel my teeth grinding against one another. My blood boils and my fists clench. I won't let her win. I won't let her take control.

"No, I'm telling you. I... I know I'm stronger than you, it's why you can't take control by force," I boast. I say it with so much confidence that I almost actually convince myself that it's true.

She drops the flower in her hand almost as fast as she drops her smile. Her head turns slowly toward me, her eyes burning a hole through me with a glare of malevolence. Black knives appear around her torso, spinning aloft, all pointed in my direction.

"Stronger than me?" She questions, walking toward me. One knife flings at me, coming straight at my face. I jump to the side, barely avoiding being impaled.

"I'm stronger than you," she declares, throwing two more knives at me as she advances. I roll to my side, dodging the first, but the second one grazes my left arm before sticking upright in the dirt. Maybe she is stronger than me. I start to crawl away, flowing through the roses as the blood continues to rain. The pain in my arm is throbbing, and I can barely put any pressure on it.

"I'm stronger than your friends," she declares. A wall of dark tentacles impedes my path. I lift myself to my feet and stretch my unscathed arm out towards it. Chains bind the flailing limbs as they struggle to slip free from the stifling restraints. I turn to Eden, who is now within a few feet of me. She points behind me, and I hear a loud crunching sound. The chains are breaking their hold on the powerful, squid-like arms. Maybe if I attack the source, I can get rid of them. I raise chains from behind her feet and throw my arm upward. The chains dash toward her neck, quickly, only to be grabbed by her as she pivots to the side, avoiding them. She squeezes them in her hand, and they turn to dust.

Her body sinks into a black whirlpool, spinning on the ground. I hear a whisper behind me, "I'm stronger than all." I turn to her the instant she grabs me by the neck and lifts me into the air with one hand.

I bring forth one chain up her leg, I feel my power fading, so one is all I can conjure. She laughs and throws me. The impact breaks my concentration and makes the cut on my arm sting. I can't tell if it's my blood running down my arm or if it's from the rain.

"Always chains. You're right, you know," she says walking over to me as I'm gasping for air, "I can't just take over. You have to open yourself to me, first. But I won't have you die because I'll perish alongside you. Open your mind."