Elementals, Nuala Sephiria [top fiction books of all time txt] 📗

not more teenagers. If there aren't any younger girls by the end of the week we'll adopt them. why do you care so much anyway? You've been opposed to adopting until you saw them."
"I'm getting lonely. I want to talk to someone my own age other than Shane."
"Right." That ended the conversation. Really, they are pretty hot. Especially that redhead, even though she was crying.
"What if they're being abused? You know it's possible, and with tose penguins, it's likely." Ive never liked nuns.
"Fine. We'll go back tomorrow."


Chapter Five...Nuala
The nun pulls me into the room. It's pitch black and I can't see. Then I hear some shiffling and a dim light comes on.The inside of the room is a torture chamber. There are stretching racks, spike beds, whipsm knives of varying sizes, and in the middle there is some type of wooden bed with hand, feet, and a face restraintn with a hose-like nozel above it.
"This is illegal." I say, my face going pale.
"No one will ever know. You won't tell, or we'll find you." She says.
I start pulling with all my strength to get away. I'd rather be out in the cold fending for myself than this.
"Convert. That's all you have to do." She says.
"No." Why did I just say that?
The nun pulls me towards the thing in the middle, walking quickly and ith a purpose. I do not want to be strapped into that thing.
She pushes me down on the hard, cold wood. She's surprisingly strong for an old woman. The nun takes one of my arms and forces it above my head then does the same with my other hand.
I start fighting with everything I have, every ounce of stregnth, but it's no use. I'm stuck.
She shackles my kicking feet, then restrains my face in an awkward looking face mold with the front cut out. I can't move.
"I will come back when that wretched family wants to take a look at you again. Or you conert. Your choice." She says, then laughs maniacally.
She turns something on the hose like nozel and fat drops of water pound slowly on one spot on my forehead. I know what this is now. It's Chinese water torture.
It drives people insane. A week of this and there's no way I'll be sane. Or alive. I'll starve, or die of dehydration. Or the insanity will get me first. I'm going to die.
Already the steady drip of the water is irritating. My arms, back, neck, and legs are uncomfortable. Think of something. Sing a song, but don't give in. Something in my head tells me. I start humming a song that got stuck in my head. Move Your Body by My Darkest Days. Perfect.
The light suddenly turns off. No problem, I like the dark. Though I've never been in this type of dark before. The kind where you can't see anything.
I start feeling nervous. There is absolutely no light coming in. The water and restraints are starting to take effect. There's no one here to help me. My breathing quickens, and I strain my eyes to see but to no avail. I try to calm myself, slow my breathing.
Then I hear something move on the other side of the room. It sounds like something id dragging across the floor. Like clothes and a human body being dragged across a cement floor.
"Hello? Is someone there?" I ask, hoping for a human answer, somone to let me out.
I hear a hard, pant-like breath, like a sigh, then nothing. Complete silence. I'm just starting to wonder if I was imagining things when the sound starts again. I listen for a few minutes.
The thing was definately coming towards me. I can barely feel the water, my terror is so high. I try to keep as quiet as I can, barely even breathing.
After long minutes of waiting and listening, the sound stops right before me. Something warm, like someone's breath, smooths across my cheek. I whimper quietly, hoping it goes away. I don't know if I can hold back my scream much longer.
The light turns on. When the ligt had gone on the breathing had stopped.I start looking around as best I can with the face restraint.
In the corner of the room I notice a girl. I feel hope of escaping break through.
"Hello? Miss? Can you help me?" I yell. The dim lights brighten and I can see her more clearly.
Her hair is greasy, her skin grayish-green. I stare in horrow as maggots crfawl all over her and flies buzz around her head. Her eyes are milky-gray and sunken in her eye sockets. A yellow, thick fluid runs from the corners of each eye, slowly trickling down her face, to her chin, to drip on her clothes.
Her mouth is sewn shut. Loose as it may be, it was still horrible to look at. Her mouth was open, the bloody, brown string clearly visible. Blood and pus were dried on the puncture holes around her gray lips. She must have gotten desperate and tried to pull her lips apart to scream, despite the strong string.
Looking at the rest of her body, I see that it’s decaying, the smell, of rot emanating from her. There are some patches where you can see the bone, with maggots wriggling in the flesh.
The light goes off. I scream as loud as possible. The scuttling starts again. I imagine the dead girl using her arms to drag the rest of her body towards me.
I don’t know how long I’ve been here. It feels like days, but was probably only a few hours.
The sounds are quicker than before. Soon, the dragging sound is right beside me. When it stops, I struggle against the metal restraints, trying my best to get away. As soon as I move, something sharp, like teeth, digs into my face. The thing must have ripped the string right from it’s mouth.
I scream and pull on my arm closest to her and it breaks free. There must have been a loose link. I shove the thing off me. The skin squishes and starts ripping off, something slightly warm and thick flowing on my hand to my arm. Wiggling maggots coat my arm as my hand pushes.
I feel like I’m about to throw up. Feeling the strings and teeth from its mouth on my face.
The light goes on. The dead girl is in the corner, in the exact position as before. I look down at my hand to see yellow-green pus, grayish-brown blood, and wriggling maggots.
The water is still pounding on my head, and it’s in my eyes. I relax. As long as the light is on, she won’t come after me.
The light goes off. The scuttling, dragging sounds are back. I don’t react. When the dragging gets close, right by my face, the door opens, letting in precious light. I don’t move. I refuse to get my hopes up.
Someone walks in and turns on the light, heaving the door open. It’s the nun. She’s probably here to put the shackle back on.
The dead girl is in the corner again. Exactly how I first saw her.
“The family has come back. You’re lucky. If they don’t want you, you will go back here.” The nun says. I barely register what she said.
“What is this disgusting goo on your arm? This will not do.” She says.
She walks over to me and starts unshackling me. I don’t care anymore. I gave in to the numbness. Nothing can hurt me anymore.
She walks to the other side and releases my legs. I’m free. Yet I still don’t care.
“Get up.” She commands.
I don’t move. “Get up! I will not drag you!” She yells. I get up, the feeling and emotions returning to my body as I think, I’m getting out!
“Come with me to the adoption room.” I follow her up the stairs and into the light. She turns off the light and says, “Goodbye, daughter.” Then she shuts the door.
The nun washes the goo off my arm with a towel. I just want to go home. But you don’t have a home anymore, my inner voice tells me. I’m all alone.
We walk into the room and the family from before is there, with Raven.
“Will you be adopting them?” The nun asks heartlessly.
The boy is staring at me, like he can see what I’ve been through.
“Yes.” The woman says.
The nun nods and leaves. I look at the boy and mouth ‘help me’. I don’t want the nun to hear.
He looks at me, the nudges the woman and gives her a look.
The nun comes back with paper work and a pen. She hands it to the woman.
“Sign this.” She says.
The woman signs then hands the paper to the nun.
“Okay. You guys are coming home with us.” The woman says and smiles.
I’m so happy to be getting out of this horrible place. Raven and I follow them out of the orphanage.
As soon as we’re out, I say, “Thank you. Those nuns are cruel.” Then start crying.
The woman comes over to me and hugs me. “What did they do to you?”
“They kept yelling at me and telling me to convert, then one of the nuns forced me down into the basement, which is a torture chamber. In the middle there was a Chinese Water Torture thing. They turned off the lights so I couldn’t see, and there was something in there. It made a dragging sound, but when the lights turned on again it was gone.”
“In the corner there was a dead girl. She was rotting and her mouth was sewn shut. The lights went off and I knew it was her coming for me. I pushed her and this gross goo was all over my arm. The lights went back on again and she was in the corner with the goo on her and it was still on my arm.” I finish, breathless. They look horrified.
Raven says, “You should have pretended to convert. They would have fed you.”
“You don’t even care, do you?” I say accusingly.
“No. It’s your fault mom and dad died.”
“I never told anyone! I didn’t even show it!” I yell. “Show what?” The boy asks.
Raven glares at me and says, “Yeah, Nuala. Show what?”
“No one believes us when we tell them.” I say, hoping it’s enough.
“I bet it’s not that weird.” The woman says.
“What would you say if I said Raven and I were fire elementals?”
Raven is looking at me with so many accusations in her eyes. I guess this doesn’t prove my innocence.
“Perfect! You’ll fit in perfectly at your new school! I forgot to introduce you to Adrik though. I’m sorry.” She points to the boy. “This is Adrik. May we know you names?”
“I’m Raven. This little idiot is Nuala.” Raven says.
“Two things. I’m eight minutes older, so don’t call me little. And second, I’m not an idiot. I’m trying to be practical. I’m also not at my best at the moment.”
“Honey, the dead girl was a ghoul.” The woman says abruptly.
“A what?”
“A ghoul is a human who has died horribly, who used to be a vampire. They feast on living flesh.”
“Oh.” I say. Everyone I silent.


Chapter Six
While we’re in the car, I ask, “If I was bitten, what would happen?”
“You would either die and come back as a ghoul or just die. It’s a good thing it’s mouth was sewn shut.” She says.
“What’s that on your cheek?” Adrik asks.
“What?” I ask, and then feel my face. There is a cut, the size of a tooth.
“I was