Human

New Game

-----

Jenna

Her eyes were as dark as midnight. And she's not human. Her naturally beautiful face comes closer to mine. "The Warrior." She says, a cruel smile appearing on her ruby lips. 

I can feel my skin crawl with what she might do with me. "Let me go," I say, trying to shake my hand out of her iron grip. "Or I'll make sure the Empress with punish you."

A flash of humor goes eerily through her eyes and my blood chills even more. "Warrior!" The girl hisses. 

"What?" I ask.

I watch as her features shift, and now in front of me is Spencer. "It's me." She whispers, her voice now calming and no longer sounding like a song. "We need to get you out of here right now." Her hand lets go of me as she stands up, and then tries to help me up too. Her hand is warm as I take it and use my strength to stand. It takes too much effort to stay upright that I know I'll be useless when it comes to fighting.

"I can barely stand. I don't think I'm going to be able to do this."

"I have a car outside, but the problem is that we won't be able to take it very far till they notice." She goes into the cave, picking everything up and finally, she helps me outside. Every second I feel the pain slowly decrease, but it's so slow that it almost feels like it isn't going away.

"How long is the drive?" I ask her, barely able to support myself in her arms.

"Couple days drive. We'll have to go slow since I'm sure that he isn't back yet." She pauses, "He has her well hidden." She says, her voice now sad. A chill creeps up my spine as I wonder what to do with this information. She's stuck in there. And I can't help her right now if they're torturing her or anything. "OK, I'll lift you a bit, but you'll have to crawl into a seat yourself." I nod my head in response. 

Getting into the car with her help was easy, but without Spencer to help me in a seat sucked. But finally, almost breathless I prepare myself for what's to come next. "Are we going to make it? Are we going to save her?" I ask. "Because I just want this to be over."

The lights in the car show Spencer looking at me sadly in the mirror. I realize with curiosity, that she isn't sad about the fact that I could lose a friend, but it's deeper than that. Like out of all this, she too could lose someone she cares for. "The least we can do for her is try." Is all she says as she starts the car, the lights turning off and we're left in silence for days.

---

She's changed so much these past two weeks. That much is very evident. The new grace she walks with as the crystal crown lays atop her head. The confidence she brings into the room. It's amazing to realize that this girl in front of me is Katie. Katie-my best friend since grade school - Katie, the girl who burps during school at lunch - Katie who always mixed her leftover food to make a gross concoction-

A tap on my shoulder takes my attention. Looking over, I see Jess look at me with wide eyes. "What is this meeting about?" She asks.

Through the week we've been having nonstop meetings on the most random days of the week. Today is the fourth for this week. "I don't know. I just hope it's not like yesterdays." I say, the memory of it resurfacing. Katie was sitting in her usual chair, and Tony's father wouldn't stop insulting her. I was expecting to see Katie flinch at his harsh words, especially since I was, but she had just sat there. Ignoring him.