Origins

This is a flashback brief telling of Tatyana and Darkness's origins. Its the working prelude to my book.

She heard what the
servants had been whispering. They said
that Derrick was some kind of monster.
They said he was cold and violent hid from the daylight and refused to
eat. They said instead of food he craved
only the blood of his enemies. The
servants always whispered about him being a monster but it had grown worse
since he had died.
To Tatyana the
rumors did not matter. Derrick had
brought her in the palace out of the peasant fields. He had called her beautiful and loved
her. She felt that despite all of
someone’s flaws they were always worth loving.
Her mother had taught her that with enough love anyone could be made
better.
She smiled at the
thought of her mother. She remembered
how her mother would stroke her hair and say, “Tatyana no matter what you do
you are my daughter and I will always love you.” She often treasured that memory as it was the
last night she had in her home before Derrick took her. She loved Derrick, king or lord or monster,
the same way. No matter what he does he is my husband and I will always love him.
“I am here as you asked for me my
Lord.” She said stepping into their old
bed chamber. He did look different
sitting still as a statue in his straight high back chair just starting at the
fire. Well, he was more staring through
the fire. He held in his right hand a
goblet and peered over his shoulder at her.
His eyes sent shivers down her spine and drew the strength from her very
blood. Maybe he was a monster.
He
only raised a single finger motioning for her to come forward. She did smoothing her dress over her hips as
she walked. He may have startled her
with his stare but she knew how attractive she was and her husband certainly
had the right to look. She enjoyed how
he looked at her most of the time with wanton desire, it made her feel valuabue. She sat in the chair next to him remembering
her mother’s words that everyone just
needed love.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She awoke bathed
in blackness. Her eyes even being more
precious and keen now could see nothing.
She was in a total absence of light, the coffin had to be sealed as such
to prevent the risk of sun light coming through. Derrick told her it was not necessary to take
foolish risks in such simple a matter.
He also told her that soon she would be able to see even in total
darkness. Darkness. That is what he
asked people to call him now. Since his
death he was different and said it warranted a new name. With her death she struggled to be the same
person and part of that was clinging to her old name.
She pressed on the
coffin lid and it easily shifted, moved by her seemingly unnatural
strength. She slipped the dark wooden
lid along the top of the coffin making a slight sqeak until she could sit
up. She rose her head from the velvet
pillow and satin lining of the coffin causing her long smooth black hair to
cascade back from her head and still brush the pillow top. It was strange she could feel the pillow even
though now it was only her hair that was touching it. She could feel every fiber and thread of the
satin including the patch of threads imperfectly collected under her left
calf. It would never have been noticed
before she… before the gift.
Derrick’s lip slip
open as well and he sprung to a sitting position hunger and cool lust in his
eyes. He was also good and steeling his
emotions and moving evenly and presenting a perfectly calm expression, a leader
needed that. The gift seemed to magnify his ability.
Yet at times it seems to work counter to it as well. He always awoke hungry and his emotions were
more exaggerated as were hers. Or
perhaps it was just her new elevated senses that saw the pulsating lust behind
his eyes.
“My Lord and Lady,” A servant
charged with guarding them while they slept spoke up. “Welcome to a new night. I and your kingdom welcome it and you. “ He knocked on the bed chamber door and it
opened revealing a tied up man and his wife.
They were hurt badly beaten and broken, no doubt some of the peasants rebelling against Derrick.
She felt bad for them;
part of her even wanted to heal them.
They were not wrong to fight against Derrick and herself, we are monsters. She chased the thoughts
away. She could not afford to take pity
on them, it would only make this harder and it was intolerable as it was. She tried not to eat before, but the hunger
always won, and she knew it did not matter, even if she conquered her hunger
Derrick would kill them both anyway.
Weeping
she watched as Derrick strode toward the bound woman. His cape filled with air and rippled out and
back in a smooth wave as he crouched to be near his prey. He gently grabbed the woman’s neck with his
strong pale hands and drove his teeth into the soft portion of the neck tearing
flesh and exposing wild gushes of blood.
The thirst was now too much and she did the same to the neck of the man
in front of her. Surely, Derrick making
her a part of his new life surely meant she was loved.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He had summoned
her again. Tatyana groaned under his
constant requests and demands. He maybe
the rightful king of the land but he misunderstood so many things. They listened to him only because he had
power. They followed her because they loved
her, because they needed her presence and approval.
She
brushed her hair with a gold inlaid brush savoring the sensation of each long
full stroke through her black hair. It
was mostly black but she could see shades of the darkest red begin to reflect
in it. The fact she could no longer view
herself in a mirror frustrated her, she had to trust she was a beautiful as
they all said. Slowly stroking the brush
one last time she stood her gown reaching for the floor.
She walked the
long caverns of the castle paved with the skulls of those who had opposed
Derrick’s rule on the land. Hundreds had
tried to save their people from the
monster Darkness but had failed. They
would continue to try and continue to fail for this Darkness could not be
defeated. But the constant struggle
fighting and slaughter took a toll on the people, she could only imagine how
much more prosperous they could be if they could be rid of such distractions.
To aid Derrick in
this she had began meeting with the lords of the land and other noble
households. The sight of her was almost
always enough to win their loyalty and devotion, if her sight alone was not
enough she would tempt and satisfy them until it was. She was concerned that their loyalty would
always be sworn to her instead of Derrick but her loyalty was to him so in the
end it was the same.
She approached the
throne room and two lesser immortals opened the high black obsidian doors. The court stopped for a moment as she entered
and they all gazed upon her. She had long
grown use to the scene stopping nature of her presence and had forgotten a time
when that was not the way of the world.
She fully expected and utilized the opportunity it provided for her. She spoke, “My Lord, I have com..”
“SILENCE!” Derrick screamed
interrupting her. It was as if a spear
had run her through she was not use to being interrupted. He stood from his black stone throne and as
he paced towards her it was as if the light emanating from the fireplace was
being devoured by his very presence. As
his mood grew darker so did the room. “Your escapades and plots have reached my
ears. You violate my rights, and
conspire against me from my own home.
You meet with and gather the lords whose loyalty I have the least
confidence in and require oaths from them to serve you.”
“My lord it is..” A hard fierce
slap struck her across the chin. The
strength of his arm was rivaled only by his rage. Her feet left the floor and she flew back
sprawling to the floor. The pain in her
face was dwarfed by the shattering of her heart. Darkness’s boot stomped on the back of her
neck forcing her face into the floor cracking the skulls and rocks that made it
up. She could feel and hear every fiber
of the stone separating.
“I will not be interrupted by one
made to serve me. Perhaps I have been
too kind and too patient with you. Kept
you too close for the sake of your bosom and passion. You will not be allowed to take my kingdom
from me.” Bending down to whisper in her ear he must have been able to see her
crying. He continued, “You have grown
too powerful and I will tolerate no threats.
I created you, all you are you owe to me.”
“But, my Love…”
He grabbed her
neck and held her suspended in the air squeezing tightly. She did not need to breath to live but she
did to speak and he took that from her.
All she could do was cry and that she did deeply. “I never loved you,
how could anyone love you. You were my
toy and my pet, one that has out lived its usefulness and nothing more.” After
a long pause and in a voice that boomed through the room with unnatural
strength and twisted in anger, “It would be a tragedy to destroy such a grand
creation. You are hereby banished from my
kingdom for all time. Under . . . pain .
. . of . . . death.” The last word
seemed like a hiss that hung in the air.
It was only the crash of her tears to the floor that drowned out the
ringing in her ears.
He
tossed her to the side like a piece of used linen and cared for her less. She would leave and she would find love, she
would prove to him she could be loved, that she should be loved.