z

Young Writers Society



Drink of Thyself chp1

by little.angelfire


Chapter one

~blood lies~

Anaya sat on the man, the corpse that once had been a live, until she ripped her teeth into his throat, tearing his flesh to threads. Her body could still feel the memory his body writhing underneath her, trying its hardest to get away from her thrashing nails and sharp, inhuman teeth. He hadn’t been so lucky. His lifeless corpse was covered in blood, as was her own trembling body. This was the third time that her instincts had taken over her, urging to drink from the veins of the humans.

She sat on the man’s stomach, not knowing what to do, if there was anything she could do. It was night time, well past midnight, and her mother was probably fast asleep in bed. She shivered from the cold autumn breeze, leaves catching in her hair. Her clothes were blood soaked, and she didn’t think it would be safe to walk home like she was. She considered just taking everything off and walking home like that, but she was worried of being seen naked. She wondered what one would be safer.

She sighed heavily, and got up from the man, deciding it would be safer to be seen in the nude, rather than covered in blood and looking like the murderer she was. She stripped down, the blood soaking all the way through to her last layer of clothing. She cleaned off her face with a dry area of her shirt and shivered as her flesh began to crawl from the coolness of the night air. She wrapped her arms around herself as her flesh puckered and bumped. It was a fifteen minute walk to her house, and she knew it would be a very long, cold, lonely walk.

* * * *

“I can’t believe how many murders we’ve had here within the past two months!” Janet beamed as she sat down at the lunch table, her enthusiasm seeming misplaced in the this tragedy.

Anaya looked up from her lunch, seeming less than interested in the topic that her friend brought up. “I heard they were all just placed as an animal attack.” Ana said, taking a delicate sip from her chicken soup. “No human could possibly rip through a throat like that.”

Janet pouted. “Well, thanks for ruining that moment.” She sighed heavily and looked down at her own bowl of soup and wrinkled her nose at it.

“But they’re still looking for the animal that could have possibly attacked those three people.” Rina contributed to the conversation. “Look around, we live in a hick town. What animal could have possibly done all that? A deer?” She snorted.

Ana giggled. “Of course, you know those things are just evil and viscous enough to do such a thing as rip the throat of a human out.”

Janet spit out her soup, a small chunk of chicken rolling across the table. “I heard that it looked as if something drank the blood, too! There were chunks of the people spit out all over the place, but the blood was cleaned right off of them!”

Rina curled her lip in disgust. “Jan, that was so attractive, why not try spitting your food out all over the table around the guys and then talking about human flesh that was feasted on? I’m sure you’ll get a guy that way.”

Janet blushed and smiled weakly. “I’m sorry Rina, should I change the subject?”

“Okay…I’m not hungry anymore. Janet ruined my appetite.”

Ana stared at the two as they sat there and talked. She dived into her food, not feeling the least bit queasy from the topic at hand. She watched Rina push her tray aside, as Janet continued on with the facts that she heard over the news about the killings. She began blocking out her friends, trying to find the taste of her soup, but, like always, tasted nothing at all. Her belly was filling with the soup, but her tongue was left unsatisfied. Her mouth felt thick from the bloodless chicken, and longed for the metalicness of the thick, red liquid. Her tongue tended to linger on the metal spoon, that taste lingering with the salt of the broth making her long even more for the liquid life force.

* * * *

Ana went straight home after school. Her need for blood had been getting to her since lunch, and she knew she needed to use one of her mother’s blood slaves to get rid of the urge before she killed another human.

She opened the door to the tiny apartment, and was surprised to see her mother waiting for her on the couch, her face still looking so young. Anaya smiled at her, but Lillia didn’t offer any smile in return. Instead, she just looked away, her eyes cast to the floor.

“Lilly, what’s wrong?” She asked her mother, dropping her school bag and closing the door behind her. “Did something happen?”

Lillia chewed on her bottom lip and looked up at her daughter. “Yes, you are 16 now, love.” She said and rose to her feet and stood in front of her daughter, holding Ana’s face in her hands.

“I know that.” Ana said warily, not knowing where Lilly was going with this statement.

“You are old enough now, Ana. I’ve taught you everything I could.” Her eyes brimmed with tears and she took in a deep, struggling breath. “My mother left me when I was 16, her mother did the same to her.”

Ana stared down at the woman who had raised her since birth. “Mother…” Her voice trailed off. She rarely ever called Lilly her mother, being taught to call her by her name. Now she knew why. Her mother just didn’t want to get too attached to her.

“Ssh,” Lilly said. “This is just how it must be. I can’t stay here for much longer, and you shouldn’t either.” She looked away. “I never wanted a child.” She said sadly. “Nor did my mother, and if I had to have a child, I wanted a boy.” She looked back at Ana and let go of her, stepping back. “I tried to raise you as well as I could. You know how to mark a human, and you know how to fend for yourself. You are not to go near anymore of my men. If you do, then I’ll kill you.” She told her with a stern voice. “I’ll leave you with the words of my mother. Beware of the males, and beware of who you are. If you get caught, not even the fires of hell will save you.”

She vanished then, and Anaya was left alone in the empty apartment. Left to fend for herself with nothing but the craving for blood. Her mother had taught her how to teleport, to move from place to place to get to different blood slaves. Lilly taught her how to temp, and how to get just the right amount of blood, never over or under drinking. Ana knew how to make her mark, but had never done it before, and she knew how to find other vampires marks, so she could stay clear of them.

Anaya didn’t have an army of slaves to drink from. She had always had help from her mother, but now she had to do everything on her own. She had to leave the town, leave everything behind, and start her own life. She was a young vampire, the worst kind, and she didn’t know what to do.

Tears brimmed her pale green eyes and she wiped them away, refusing to cry. She hated humans. Hated them because they got to choose whether to have kids. She hated them because they had parents that truly cared. She hated them…because they lived a life of lies. Ana wanted a life of lies, but she could never escape the truth. She could run all she liked, but the truth was always there in the mirror, and the mirror never lies.


Note: You are not logged in, but you can still leave a comment or review. Before it shows up, a moderator will need to approve your comment (this is only a safeguard against spambots). Leave your email if you would like to be notified when your message is approved.







Is this a review?


  

Comments



User avatar
99 Reviews


Points: 1210
Reviews: 99

Donate
Sat Jan 12, 2008 5:36 am
Monki wrote a review...



Interesting... Here's my critique :


Chapter one
~Blood Lies~


Anaya sat on the man, the corpse that once had been a live, until she ripped her teeth into his throat, tearing his flesh to threads. Her body could still feel the memory his body writhing underneath her, trying its hardest to get away from her thrashing nails and sharp, inhuman teeth. He hadn’t been so lucky. His lifeless corpse was covered in blood, as was her own trembling body. This was the third time that her instincts had taken over her, urging to drink from the veins of the humans.

She sat on the man’s stomach, not knowing what to do, if there was anything she could do. It was night time, well past midnight, and her mother was probably fast asleep in bed. She shivered from the cold autumn breeze, leaves catching in her hair. Her clothes were blood soaked, and she didn’t think it would be safe to walk home like she was. She considered just taking everything off and walking home like that, but she was worried of being seen naked. She wondered what one would be safer.

She sighed heavily, and got up from the man, deciding it would be safer to be seen in the nude, rather than covered in blood and looking like the murderer she was. She stripped down, the blood soaking all the way through to her last layer of clothing. She cleaned off her face with a dry area of her shirt and shivered as her flesh began to crawl from the coolness of the night air. She wrapped her arms around herself as her flesh puckered and bumped. It was a fifteen minute walk to her house, and she knew it would be a very long, cold, lonely walk.
* * * *

“I can’t believe how many murders we’ve had here within the past two months!” Janet beamed as she sat down at the lunch table, her enthusiasm seeming misplaced in the this tragedy.
The word 'the' can be omitted.

Anaya looked up from her lunch, seeming less than interested in the topic that her friend brought up. “I heard they were all just placed as an animal attack.” Ana said, taking a delicate sip from her chicken soup. “No human could possibly rip through a throat like that.”

Janet pouted. “Well, thanks for ruining that moment.” She sighed heavily and looked down at her own bowl of soup and wrinkled her nose at it.

“But they’re still looking for the animal that could have possibly attacked those three people.” Rina contributed to the conversation. “Look around, we live in a hick town. What animal could have possibly done all that? A deer?” She snorted.

Ana giggled. “Of course, you know those things are just evil and viscous enough to do such a thing as rip the throat of a human out.”
I think that you should re-word the last sentence.

Janet spit out her soup, a small chunk of chicken rolling across the table. “I heard that it looked as if something drank the blood, too! There were chunks of the people spit out all over the place, but the blood was cleaned right off of them!”

Rina curled her lip in disgust. “Jan, that was so attractive, why not try spitting your food out all over the table around the guys and then talking about human flesh that was feasted on? I’m sure you’ll get a guy that way.”

Janet blushed and smiled weakly. “I’m sorry Rina, should I change the subject?”

“Okay…I’m not hungry anymore. Janet ruined my appetite.”
Put a space (or two) between the standing periods and the word 'I'm'.

Ana stared at the two as they sat there and talked. She dived into her food, not feeling the least bit queasy from the topic at hand. She watched Rina push her tray aside, as Janet continued on with the facts that she heard over the news about the killings. She began blocking out her friends, trying to find the taste of her soup, but, like always, tasted nothing at all. Her belly was filling with the soup, but her tongue was left unsatisfied. Her mouth felt thick from the bloodless chicken, and longed for the metalicness of the thick, red liquid. Her tongue tended to linger on the metal spoon, that taste lingering with the salt of the broth making her long even more for the liquid life force.
* * * *

Ana went straight home after school. Her need for blood had been getting to her since lunch, and she knew she needed to use one of her mother’s blood slaves to get rid of the urge before she killed another human.

She opened the door to the tiny apartment, and was surprised to see her mother waiting for her on the couch, her face still looking so young. Anaya smiled at her, but Lillia didn’t offer any smile in return. Instead, she just looked away, her eyes cast to the floor.

“Lilly, what’s wrong?” She asked her mother, dropping her school bag and closing the door behind her. “Did something happen?”

Lillia chewed on her bottom lip and looked up at her daughter. “Yes, you are 16 now, love.” She said and rose to her feet and stood in front of her daughter, holding Ana’s face in her hands.

“I know that.” Ana said warily, not knowing where Lilly was going with this statement.

“You are old enough now, Ana. I’ve taught you everything I could.” Her eyes brimmed with tears and she took in a deep, struggling breath. “My mother left me when I was 16, her mother did the same to her.”

Ana stared down at the woman who had raised her since birth. “Mother…” Her voice trailed off. She rarely ever called Lilly her mother, being taught to call her by her name. Now she knew why. Her mother just didn’t want to get too attached to her.

“Ssh,” Lilly said. “This is just how it must be. I can’t stay here for much longer, and you shouldn’t either.” She looked away. “I never wanted a child.” She said sadly. “Nor did my mother, and if I had to have a child, I wanted a boy.” She looked back at Ana and let go of her, stepping back. “I tried to raise you as well as I could. You know how to mark a human, and you know how to fend for yourself. You are not to go near anymore of my men. If you do, then I’ll kill you.” She told her with a stern voice. “I’ll leave you with the words of my mother. Beware of the males, and beware of who you are. If you get caught, not even the fires of hell will save you.”

She vanished then, and Anaya was left alone in the empty apartment. Left to fend for herself with nothing but the craving for blood. Her mother had taught her how to teleport, to move from place to place to get to different blood slaves. Lilly taught her how to temp, and how to get just the right amount of blood, never over or under drinking. Ana knew how to make her mark, but had never done it before, and she knew how to find other vampires marks, so she could stay clear of them.

Anaya didn’t have an army of slaves to drink from. She had always had help from her mother, but now she had to do everything on her own. She had to leave the town, leave everything behind, and start her own life. She was a young vampire, the worst kind, and she didn’t know what to do.

Tears brimmed her pale green eyes and she wiped them away, refusing to cry. She hated humans. Hated them because they got to choose whether to have kids. She hated them because they had parents that truly cared. She hated them…because they lived a life of lies. Ana wanted a life of lies, but she could never escape the truth. She could run all she liked, but the truth was always there in the mirror, and the mirror never lies.
Put a space (or two) between the standing periods and the word 'because'.


Overall, wonderful beginning! I'd love to hear more. I didn't think I'd like something like this. I'm not at all into vampires. But, what can I say? This one caught my eye. ;) Please continue this, I want to critique this some more.




User avatar
70 Reviews


Points: 580
Reviews: 70

Donate
Thu Jan 03, 2008 9:01 am
Derek wrote a review...



Chapter one
~blood lies~


Anaya sat on the man, the corpse that once had been a live, until she ripped her teeth into his throat, tearing his flesh to threads. Her body could still feel the memory his body writhing underneath her, trying its hardest to get away from her thrashing nails and sharp, inhuman teeth.


Ok two thing.
Extra note (I'm a newbie as you no Laf!!
so i might not no what i am talking about!

1. So many comma's! i think you could find a way too lessen those
2. This is a very confusing passage for me...i read it and just kinda lost it because all the commas
3. When you put--untill she ripped her teeth into his throat and so on threw that sentence, i don't think that fits with the rest of that sentence, i sugjest changing untill and making it start a new sentence. Also the last sentence shortening it instead of using comma's


Her clothes were blood soaked, and she didn’t think it would be safe to walk home like she was.


Don't think you should use-like she was- i dont know i just think it's weird

She considered just taking everything off and walking home like that, but she was worried of being seen naked.


Don't like the-walking home like that- i dont think you shouldn't use like that-they dont cling very well together



her enthusiasm seeming misplaced in the this tragedy


You put is the this lol




wow this was really good i enjoied it very much!




User avatar
121 Reviews


Points: 1683
Reviews: 121

Donate
Tue Jan 01, 2008 5:47 pm



thankies for the critties. ^.^

I've made my own view of vampires, so there is no pain with sunlight. You'll find out later on.

I don't do third person views very often, so I'm really not all that good with them. Seriously. I always overuse 'she' because I don't know what else to say >.< I was thinkinf of rewriting this and making it into a first person story, but I like the way it's more descriptive, so I guess be keeping it this way, and just changing a little bit of it.

I have the second chapter posted on here somewhere, and I'm not sure if I'll post the third chapter or not. I think this piece might just be one of the ones that I just keep to myself, 'specially since all my books tend to be connected to eachother in some way so they can get confusing to people outside of my mind XD

but yeah, I'm probly gonna make some changes with it.

--meow




User avatar
672 Reviews


Points: 5577
Reviews: 672

Donate
Tue Jan 01, 2008 9:21 am
Squall wrote a review...



Hey Laf.

She considered just taking everything off and walking home like that, but she was worried of being seen naked. She wondered what one would be safer.


There is one flaw with that plan though. Her clothing would then be used as evidence if she chooses to discard it. If she doesn't and decides to carry it with her, then she would be more likely to be caught. Let's face it, who wouldn't miss a naked chick walking on the streets carrying her own blood stained clothes? I won't LOL. My advice is to either destroy her clothing or find some way to hide the evidence.

“I can’t believe how many murders we’ve had here within the past two months!” Janet beamed as she sat down at the lunch table, her enthusiasm seeming misplaced in the this tragedy.


In the period of two months + the amount of murders that took place, I was hoping that there was some kind of safety precaution or some kind of defence or neighbourhood watch taking place which would prevent further deaths. Lets face it, it has been two months and no there's hardly any defence against whatever is causing the murders. Pretty lousy police force I reckon.

Overall, this needs some work. There were too many major flaws for me to take this story more seriously. For example, Anaya is a vampire. However, she can walk in the middle of the day without sunblock or anything that can provide her some form of protection from the sun... Are you implying that she has some resistance to the sun? I mean come on, vampires are vulnerable to sunlight, and she can just walk in sunlight without feeling some sort of pain.

Anaya needs work as a character. You need to elaborate the ideas further which you have associated with Anaya. For example, Anaya's hate for humans. Can you work it better with the story and the character herself? Right now, that statement reads like a big info dump. Also, the ideas do not like very well. For example, the mirror statement which you had at the end of the piece. It feels very tacked on and I don't see the relevance of having that sentence in the first place. If you are going to have such a powerful statement like that, then you need to re-model your story to support that statement so that it has relevance.

Anaya also lacks emotions with what she does. In the beginning, she killed a human. So what? Does she feel proud? Unhappy? What was the feeling? Even if it was instincts, there is some form of emotion behind it. With an action comes a consequence.

With all the negative comments out of the way, I would like to say that your descriptions were pretty good and flowed quite well with the story. I like how you structured your sentences, allowing for a cohorant and pleasing read. Not once did I stop because of this. Kudos to you on that.

I hope my critique helped and I apologize if I had been a bit harsh.

Andy.

Edit: I did some little research as to whether half human/vampires are immune to sunlight or not. Apprantly they are, which pretty much negates some parts of my critique. Still, you need to make her immunity to sunlight more obvious and elaborate on it further.




User avatar
571 Reviews


Points: 14170
Reviews: 571

Donate
Tue Jan 01, 2008 8:55 am
Esmé wrote a review...



Hello,

Today I will be your critiquer, lol. As always, the boring grammar stuff and that kind of thing will be at the beginning (though there will come a time when I will learn to quote properly…) and whatever more general comments and likes/dislikes I might have will be at the end. Onward, then.



Quote:
Her body could still feel the memory his body writhing underneath her, trying its hardest to get away from her thrashing nails and sharp, inhuman teeth.

You lost a word up there, I think. Or if not, consider, perhaps, rephrasing.

Quote:
She sat on the man’s stomach, not knowing what to do, if there was anything she could do.

I might be nitpicky here - my quick warning, lol. The part after the second comma, the last part of the sentence, seems a little… not there? Not connected with the rest? As if it lacked a linking word, but none is needed, not really… I don’t know, it just sounds a bit awkward. Consider rephrasing?

Quote:
“I heard they were all just placed as an animal attack.” Ana said, taking a delicate sip from her chicken soup. “

Punctuation. Before quotes, a comma, not a period/full stop. If she were doing an action, moving, or anything like that, it would have been okay. But if it is ‘said’, or anything like that, then use comma. Like after the next piece of dialogue.

Quote:
She began blocking out her friends, trying to find the taste of her soup, but, like always, tasted nothing at all.

You have a very nice sentence up there, but if you read it out loud, you might find it bit awkward. As if something were missing. Consider rephrasing, e.g. ‘(…) but, like always, found that it tasted like nothing at all.”

Quote:
“Lilly, what’s wrong?” She asked

Dialogue punctuation. Small ‘She’

Quote:
“Yes, you are 16 now, love.”

Write it out. Sixteen, not 16.

Quote:
“Yes, you are 16 now, love.” She said

Punctuation.

Quote:
“I know that.” Ana said warily,

Punctuation.

Quote:
“I never wanted a child.” She said sadly.

Punctuation.

Quote:
If you do, then I’ll kill you.” She told her with a stern voice.

Punctuation.


Okay, so, that is the end of the boring stuff. Now, as I promised, the insights and whatnot.


The second paragraph. The third one too, know that I think of it. There are a lot of ‘she’, and I think that can be avoided. Other than just using her name - we do know it, after all - perhaps change the sentence structure of some of the sentences, so that ‘she’ is unnecessary. Or, whatever else might work, lol. As of know, that does stand out.

The part where ‘Rina contributed to the conversation’. I had no idea that Rina was there, and that part was kind of abrupt? Deserves expanding? Or merging it more with the dialogue?

Also, dialogue punctuation. I tried to explain a bit of it, but I’m not too good at explaining anything to anyone -.- So, I’ll just end it with: ‘she asked, she said, she exclaimed’ - the ‘she’ is always small, whether there is a exclamation mark, question mark, comma. Before the such, there is no period. If there is, it means that the character is DOING something, not saying, exclaiming, etc.

Characters. Anya, as the MC, is pretty good, in my opinion. She is alive and likable, a pretty good mixture. However, I think she is the best at the beginning; I would like to see even more of her reactions at what her mother said and did to her. And her mother - compared to Anya, she is a bit flat. everything she says and does is a bit abrupt, and while it would be good if there were more description with it (tone of voice, body language), there really isn’t that much of that to talk of it.

Feelings, emotions. Anya, as I said, is good at it, though I would add more at the ending. Her situation is described, told, showed, but I want to see Anya’s view at it. And her mother… that is where I want more emotions and feeling. However coldblooded and uncaring and stony-faces and whatnot she might be, I want to see more.

Overall, I enjoyed your story, and am looking forward to reading its continuation. You’ve grabbed my attention, and I hope that that continuation will be posted on YWS.



Okay, so that is the end of that… If you have any questions, feel free to PM me.

Cheers,
Esme




User avatar
36 Reviews


Points: 890
Reviews: 36

Donate
Mon Dec 31, 2007 5:13 pm
the morrow wrote a review...



This hasn't received any attention, so I thought I'd revive it.

a live

Should read "alive."

His lifeless corpse was covered in blood, as was her own trembling body.

The location of this sentence within the first paragraph is questionable.

She sat on the man’s stomach, not knowing what to do, if there was anything she could do. It was night time, well past midnight, and her mother was probably fast asleep in bed. She shivered from the cold autumn breeze, leaves catching in her hair.

The sentences are correctly punctuations, but there are too many commas in such a small section! Split it up.

She wondered what one would be safer.

Use "which" when referring to two aforementioned options.

deciding it would be safer to be seen in the nude, rather than covered in blood and looking like the murderer she was.

This is superfluous; you already know her reasoning from the previous paragraph. We already know, when you say that she strips down, what her reason is for doing so.

She wrapped her arms around herself as her flesh puckered and bumped.

Good verbs. :D

her enthusiasm seeming misplaced in the this tragedy.

:gasp: grammatic error! Sacrilege!


Anaya

I like the name...though I can't seem to pronounce it. Ann-ayy-aaahh.

“But they’re still looking for the animal that could have possibly attacked those three people.” Rina contributed to the conversation.

There should be a comma after people instead of a period. "Contributed to the conversation" interrupts the flow, consider "said," "added," and "interjected."

Janet spit out her soup, a small chunk of chicken rolling across the table. “I heard that it looked as if something drank the blood, too! There were chunks of the people spit out all over the place, but the blood was cleaned right off of them!”

:twisted:

Rina curled her lip in disgust. “Jan, that was so attractive, why not try spitting your food out all over the table around the guys and then talking about human flesh that was feasted on? I’m sure you’ll get a guy that way.”

The first sentence Rina says is too lengthy; it sounds unnatural.

**I would consider splitting this piece into more parts. It might be why it hasn't been reviewed yet.**

“I never wanted a child.” She said sadly.

Comma needed.

Tears brimmed her pale green eyes and she wiped them away, refusing to cry. She hated humans. Hated them because they got to choose whether to have kids. She hated them because they had parents that truly cared. She hated them…because they lived a life of lies. Ana wanted a life of lies, but she could never escape the truth. She could run all she liked, but the truth was always there in the mirror, and the mirror never lies.

A solid conclusion, though needs to be more extrapolation on "they lived a life of lies."





A big mountain of sugar is too much for one man. I can see now why God portions it out in those little packets.
— Homer Simpson