The Children of Alessandra

Centuries ago, in 1283, just after the formation of the Kingdom of Naples, a noble girl and her family had moved to the land from Sicily 2 years prior. In those two years, a certain man of similar status, Enzo Rossi, gave his heart to the young maiden, and yet for years she turned him down, claiming that she did not need his desire. Finally, he had a locket made special for her, commissioned a painting of her to be done small enough to fit inside, and presented it to her.

She had been wearing it the day Enzo went missing.

She had been wearing it the day they found his body in a lake on the Kingdom outskirts.

Alessandra Marino died with the heart-shaped locket on her chest, after a death by Hanging on charges of murder. There was nothing she could do to sway them, their minds had been made up. That same night, they buried it in an unmarked graves for criminals alongside her. Every time someone tried to pull it off, their hand began to burn at the touch.

Once, thousands of years gone by in the year 1505 , archaeologists had discovered the mass graveyard. He asked around for stories about the site, but all people seemed to be worried about was the missing locket. They called it the Heart of Stone, as only someone with such a heart could kill someone who loved them so.

The locket did not resurface for 500 years.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 9,999.

The nation found itself in ruin, 9,999 cities crumbling and falling into disarray, the number showing no signs of slowing. Inconclusive reports of seemingly-possessed individuals tearing their towns apart, ruthless and without mercy, leaving no survivors.

People were calling it the Thrall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arwin woke up with dust in his lungs and rubble entangled in his hair. Every muscle ached as he looked around, finding himself lying in a pile of bricks. Deathly gray clouds blanketed out the sun, leaving him in a surreal and unsettling darkness.

He slid down the mountain of debris and stumbled onto the cracked pavement below. Looking around, he recognized the two halves of a sign spelling out “Clairemont High School”.

“What in the Hell-”

Like I told you before. You are powerless no more, my Child.

Memories came back with the chilling voice invading his mind. Waking in his bed, hand hitting the unfamiliar black box on his nightstand before silencing the alarm clock. The number 10,000 engraved on the back in silver thread. Opening it and finding the silver heart-shaped locket, black gem cut out in a similar shape and embedded in the center of the front. A note slipped onto the floor: Her Heart of Stone again shall reign, as the oppressor’s reach their demise. The powerless shall bear witness to Queen Alessandra’s rise.

He opened the clasp and everything went black.

“What did you do to me? What did you make me do?!” he shouted, hands now covered in black smoke lifting and spraying nearby chunks of brick. He ducked right to avoid one flying a little too close.

I did exactly as I promised. Now, Child, it is time to ascend. It is time for you to meet your family.

“You made me kill my family. Get the hell out of my head!”

“Ugh, Arwin? Hey, who are you talking to?”

He turned to find a very disheveled Molly Parker, one of the girl’s from his Math Class.

Ah, what a little fighter. I was certain we had gotten everyone. No matter, settle this. We mustn't waste any more time.

Molly stepped closer, noticing a tension between the two. Arwin’s shoulders hunched and upon rising to meet her eyes, she discovered pitch black eyes and inky rivers running down his face and throat.

“Arwin...What is going on? Just...hold on, listen to me.”

“Leave no one. I must succeed in order to ascend, to meet my family and serve Lady Alessandra.” Molly watched in horror as his eyes grew darker with each word, pupil expanding and blanketing out the deep brown before moving onto the white, until she stared into two voids.

He jumped, pummeling her to the ground before wrapping a hand around her throat. Black smoke encircled the other, pouring from his palm and clouding her vision. She could feel fire coursing through her veins, pain blaring in her skull and tears dripping down her cheeks.

Through the haze, Molly lifted her hand and felt around until it came into contact with a piece of brick. Without hesitating, she wrapped her fingers around it tight and brought it up, the sickening crunch against his skull resounding in hers. It merely served as a distraction as he fell to the side, smoke dissipating and blood dripping down his face.

Make this quick, my child. We must move on soon.

Arwin lashed out with a billow of smoke, and Molly panicked as the burning feeling once again invaded her lungs. Moving blindly through tears and fog, she struck with the hand holding the brick. A disgusting squelching sound perforated her ears and the smoke cleared to reveal Arwin, pulling a sharp piece of brick from his chest. The jagged line left behind was only in her view for a second before he hit the ground.

I had such high hopes for you. 10,000 children with power beyond their dreams, you with more than any. And yet, here you lie, that same power a stain left on the Earth that abandoned you, tormented you. Sleep, my Child. You shall not be forgotten by your family, and we shall assure your sacrifice is not in vain.

“Molly...the heart…”

Molly took the necklace in her hand. “This? What about it?”

“Whatever you do, don’t look...inside it. Ever, and don’t ever...put it on. Destroy it, if you can,” he warned through fits of coughs and shallow gasps for breath.

She nodded, but as he took his final breath, the jewelry in her hand began to burn. As soon as it was dropped back to Arwin’s chest, it began to glow black, until finally it pulsed once and vanished, leaving a miniature black heart imprinted in his skin. Molly nearly fainted as the skin of his forehead began to glow, and upon dissipating revealed a carved number.

10,000.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Too afraid of having to explain the nightmare that had occurred in the small town, Molly ran back to her house, grabbed her parents keys from the hook by the door and drove into the night, never once daring a look back at her home. She found a decently priced hotel in the next city over and got a room, hiding the blood on her hands from the view of the counter clerk with a pair of gloves. She had been in too much of a hurry to wash them, and found her mother’s gloves on the floor under the driver’s side.

That night she moved as if nothing had happened, as if everything she’d known had not been blown away like a stack of cards in the wind.

As if she would fall asleep and not see that number.

10,000.

By the standards she now found herself living in, Molly would admit to a reasonable night sleep. Not completely restful, but providing enough vigor to get her up and out of bed. Reaching over for her phone to shut off the alarm, she found a thin black box underneath the device.

With shaking hands, she turned the box over in her hands.

10,001.

A voice rang out in the small room, chilling her to the bone and not exactly quiet, though Molly was sure she was the only one being spoken to.

Her Heart of Stone again shall reign, as the oppressor’s reach their demise. The powerless shall bear witness to Queen Alessandra’s rise.

The voice turned to a terrifying, low laugh as something came over Molly, and she found herself opening the box and sliding the necklace out, fingers tracing over the latch.

Welcome, 10,001. My beautiful daughter. Your soul burns with strength, and yet your heart aches with the cost of the life you took, seemingly without choice. I understand your pain, Child. You shall never be powerless again. Gaze upon the face of your Lady Alessandra. Your family is waiting.

Her thumb popped the latch and she opened it to find a small portrait, faded with age but clear enough to depict a beautiful young woman. Once Molly looked into the eyes, a fog of black smoke blanketed the room, and her mind began to sway.

Welcome home, daughter. Let us begin.