The Royal Within

Chapter 28

Light shone through my eyes, and relief took over my body. They didn't kill me. I shifted my back, and realized I was on some sort of platform that was moving. Something tingled against my hand, and instantly I thought of Luke. He was still holding my hand.

I squeezed his hand, wondering if he was awake, but there was no response. I struggled a little bit more, but heard a comforting whisper.

"If you continue to move, you will be given another tranquilizer leaf." The voice was feminine, and young, but mature enough to be about my age.

"Let me go." I tried to say, but my words slurred. Then, my mouth was pried open, and a planty substance was shoved down my throat.

----

I woke up to Luke saying my name repeatedly. "Ruth!" I jolted up, and the voice that tried to warn me to be quiet rang through my head.

His hand rested on my cheek, as he inspected my face. "Are you ok?" He paused and looked at my extremities. "Did they hurt you?"

I shook my head, and a wave of dizziness fell over me. Luke pushed me back against the dirt floor, and he frowned. "Rest."

He stood up, and looked around in our tiny tent. "This girl keeps coming into here, and checking on you. She said she would come when you are awake."

I didn't have time to respond before a short light pink skinned girl walked into the tent. Herr hair was pale, but she wore a dress that resembled a flower. Her hair was down, and it tumbled down past her shoulders. She would have looked exactly like the others, if it hadn't been for when I took a second look at her.

Her hair did not contain the pink streaks, and she contained less muscle than the others. Her eyes were a soft, lighter pink than all the others as well.

She held up her pointer finger to her mouth, and motioned us over. "Are you Ruth?" She asked quietly.

I nodded, and she nodded happily. "Good. I'm going to get you out of here."

My eyebrows knit together, and I was about to ask more, when she was about to leave. "What's your name?" Luke asked.

She turned around, and snickered, as if she didn't like her name. "Willow." Then she left, and Luke and I sat alone.

It felt like hours before another person came in the room. This time, it was the one who talked us into eating the leaves.

"Hello friends." Delphine purred to us. We didn't respond, but Luke crossed his arms. Delphine frowned, but only for a second.

She waited for us to say something, as she impatiently tapped her foot to the ground. "Where are our friends?" I questioned.

Delphine didn't flinch. "Here of course." Her response caused Luke to redden with anger, and she immediately changed her response. "You can go see them, if you would like."

We both nodded simultaneously, and Delphine forced a smile. "Wonderful, follow me."

With my head still being a little bit dizzy, Luke helped me up. "You good?" He asked, and when I nodded, he slowly let go of me.

Delphine waited for us by the entrance, and when she opened it, I was almost in a trance. It was like a private island, except for all possible danger. There was a small lake glimmering in the middle, and tall trees that contained giants tree houses that connected to each other.

Delphine smiled when she saw us gawking. "I know. Pretty, isn't it?" I stopped admiring the landscape, and focused back to the task at hand, finding my friends.

The same girl that we saw earlier approaches us when we were nearing the lake. "Shall I go fetch their allies, miss?"

Delphine nodded. "Go, and be gentle with them Willow." The girl (Willow) nodded respectfully, and ran off.

-------Meanwhile----

Willow ran towards the direction of my friends, and with every thundering step, Willow thought of a way to escape this treacherous place.

They will be my way out. She thought with every breath.

Willow couldn't live here any longer. Not after what they did to her parents. Being an orphan is like being powerless here. Your rankings are based on your parents, and since Willow's are gone, she's at the bottom. She's treated worse than the dirt they farm on.

Reaching the tent, Willow stopped to a halt. She bent down to see the wet mud squished with fresh footprints. She sighed. Delphine would kill her if these people got away.

She followed the footprints to the animal ranch, and started seeing blood marks.

Willow was checking on the cows when a pair of eyes met hers. Intrigued, she moved closer, until she realized they hovered over a cow that was laying down...covered in blood.

The man standing over it watched her in wonder, trying to figure out what she was going to do.

She slowly moved my hand to my pocket, and pulled out her tranquilizer dart. She stalked towards the red eyes man, but he didn't move. She looked to the cow, only for a second, to see the two piercings.

Fear gripped her heart, but only for a second. This man was a vampire. She continued to walk towards him, but he still remained motionless, until the cow mooed one last time, and his teeth flew straight back into it.

Willow used this time to throw the dart into the vampire's back, causing him to stiffen. Since he was a vampire, the tranquilizer would only stop movement, not cause him to sleep.

She pulled the vampire away from the cow, which was now dead. She placed him on his back, and he stiffly moved his neck.

She stiffened, but relaxed when she realized he could only move his neck. "You ate our cow." She said in a monotone voice.

The vampire licked his lips, and his eyes turned lighter. "I can get you a new one."

"That won't be necessary. My mission is taking you to your friend Ruth." Willow started to walk away, but swiftly moved back into stance as she remembered that he can't move.

"You didn't think this through did you?" His voice was dipped with amusement, but it only annoyed Willow more.

"You're trapped in here now, and you're saying I'm the one who didn't think this through?" Willow glared at the vampire, willing him to understand how she hates vampires.

The vampire smirked, and casually tried to move his body. He snarled when he failed, and glanced back up to Willow's angered face. "Have we met, Plum, or what's with the face?"

Her face reddened at the nickname. "Don't ever call me plum again, and no we have not met." The vampire looked confused.

"Then what's your problem?" He questioned her. She curled her fists, and for a second, he thought she was going to punch him, but then she released an angry breath, amd calmed down.

"My problem-" She paused, and the vampire noticed the locket she wore around her neck. She fingered it gently, and a small tear fell from her eyes. She quickly wiped it away, and the anger took it's place. "Your kind killed my brother."

The vampire felt bad for her, but wasn't shocked. Not all vampires were good. Not even him. "I'm sorry, but you can't take that out on all vampires plum."

Her eyes narrowed. "Even though you're supposed to be in charge of them?" The vampire merely shrugged, but internally, he was shocked. Willow continued to prove that she knew who he was. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Christopher."

Chris gave her a tight smile. "Oh, the pleasure is all mine."

A/N
Hey guys!! I hope you liked the 3rd person POV!! Just let me know!
Thank you so much for reading!