Prologue

Twigs snapped and leaves crunched beneath her bloodied feet. Her breathing was erratic and tears coursed down her face. They were still following her. She could feel their eyes boring into her back. She turned sharply, trying to lose the monsters persuing her. She was tiring quickly, but her fear of being caught drove her onward. She let out a strangled cry as she tripped on a tree root, slamming into the cold, hard ground. She righted herself quickly, knowing that if she was caught, she most definitely would not live to tell the tale. She saw a river ahead of her and felt her heart stop. She would never be able to cross it! Her knees nearly buckled under the weight of the sheer terror that enveloped her. She came to a stop and glanced at her surroundings, but everywhere she looked, she saw black. Not the comforting black of the night sky, but the cold, suffocating black that would fall upon you in your darkest of nightmares; it was the lullaby of Death, himself. It was what shone in their very eyes- wretched, unfathomable, onyx eyes.

Her heart raced and her eyes darted around like those of a frightened animal. She told herself to run, to jump into the river, anything, but she couldn't. Her traitorous fear had completely paralyzed her and as they closed in, she prayed for a quick end to this. Her throat constricted and, as she stuggled to breathe, a violent wind ripped through the wooded area, picking up leaves and whipping her hair and skirt about her. Seconds became minutes and the minutes turned into hours, lasting for days. A century stretched out before her, blurring the line separating reality from fantasy, making her wonder what her fight was worth. She had fought so hard and yet no one would know of the evil that lurked in these shadows- deadly whispers of betrayal- and they would continue killing people. More tears escaped her eyes, melding with the dust and the blood that marred her once beautiful face. Pain spiked through her body and battled it, still trying to catch her breath. She heard cold cruel laughter and it disgusted her. She hated the way these beasts could control people and she hated the fact that they could kill someone without even touching them. She hated herself for not being able to stop this torment, and she hated knowing that, one way or another, she would die this day. Resigned to her ominous fate, she mustered up her remaining strength and courage, for she could feel the life draining from her weary body.

"Pace per sempre," she whispered, her voice soft yet firm as she finally relented to the all-consuming pain.

Her back arched once before her body dropped limply to the ground. Her head lolled to the side, exposing the face on which horror had been frozen. Her once expressive eyes were wide, but empty, and her mouth hung open in a scream that would never be heard. The raging winds slowed and then stopped altogether as the usually impassive black eyes that had watched the young woman's demise glittered with malicious amusement. Satisfied with their work, the creatures turned and retreated silently the way they had come, never noticing the bright blue eyes that watched them, nor the uneven steps of the terrified child whose life would be permanently altered by the tragedy she had witnessed.