The Stone Baby

I can hardly process the road in front of me as I drive my motorcycle down the all too familiar road leading to Damian's house. I could not believe that after three years, I was going to have to be around him once more. I had thought that I had finally escaped and that I would never have to face those nauseating neon green eyes again, but he found a way to bring me back.

A letter was sent to me yesterday informing me that this past year, Damian had been preying on my sister, Marwa, telling her that he will provide her a stable job and that he will always take care of her no matter what. Of course, my sister, who could not escape the ever growing shadow of a failing college career, took the bait. My parents did absolutely nothing about it, in fact, they condoned it, claiming that it was for the best since she wouldn't have been able to accomplish much on her own anyway. However, they never even considered to acknowledge that my sister is disabled. She needed to get treatment and have access to support so that she can live a fulfilling life without having to resort to depending on a narcissist like Damian. But alas, it's too fucking late. While I was attempting to build a life of my own so I could eventually save my sister, Damian took advantage of my absence, punishing me for rejecting him in the most vile and sinister way possible. Now, I have to walk my sister to her imminent, painful death with a smile plastered on my face.

After two months of knowing each other, Damian married my sister and then got her pregnant pretty soon after. For her whole life, my sister had always wanted to be a mother. For the entirety of the pregnancy, Damian and his vapid mother treated her like a princess all while knowing that she was never going to give birth to a child nor was she even going to survive labor. Damian and I are both Dragons, which are people who are chosen to change the world with magical abilities, whether it's for the worse or for the better. When male Dragons choose to be with a normal human female and have children with her, if their magic is not fully mastered or corrupted, it could result in the death of the mother as the "child" growing inside her is actually a poisonous stone that when delivered, will pierce through her uterus and rip her open. If that doesn't kill her, the poison that has been traveling through every vein in her body, breaking down her muscles and bones, certainly will. This means that for a Dragon like Damian to have a child, the mother must also be a Dragon to be able to compensate for his weakness. Apparently, Damian broke this news to her last week after she dared to hold him accountable for cheating on her with multiple women. Ever since then, my poor sister has lost her mind and has deluded herself into believing that she is pregnant with a healthy son and that her and Damian will take care of him together.

I finally see the outline of Damian's gothic-style manor in the distance and immediately feel a numbness spreading throughout my body. As my motorcycle glides towards the gates, I begin to hear distant screams and maniacal laughter which only makes the numbness worse. I know it's my sister and just the thought of seeing her in this state makes me sick and I almost crash into the gates. The only thing that prevented me from doing so was the sound of another motorcycle revving behind me. I turn around and find a man on a dark green motorcycle quickly parking and speed walking towards me as he takes off his matching helmet. "What the hell were you thinking going over to Damian's on your own, Ana Li!?" I take off my own helmet and set it aside. "Qais, to be quite frank with you, I'm very bad at asking for help and it's not like I want someone else to witness my sister dying brutally either." My voice cracks a little and I turn away as tears rapidly cloud my vision. "Ana Li... I understand what you're saying but you know better. You should have told me or someone else to come with you. You're in his terrain now and you know that he's been trying to find you for years. How do you know that he would let you back out again after putting your sister to rest?" Another scream echoes throughout the premises and I look over to see Qais wince. "I'm so sorry, Ana Li. This is vile..." I then close my eyes for a moment as a shaky sigh leaves my lips. "There's nothing we can do now except be with her." I take another breath before continuing. "And I'm sorry, you're right. I should have said something earlier," I whisper. "But, we need to go. Now." I try to say with conviction as we walk over to the gate. I know that the camera above it has been focusing on us for some time, so I don't know why no one has come over to unlock it yet. We look around to see if we can spot someone, but the entire front yard is deserted. "HEY! I KNOW YOU SEE US! LET US IN, YOU COWARD!" I yell, grabbing the metal stakes and shaking the gates. Her screams and laughter seem to only get louder and more frequent. I can't take it and grab two neighboring stakes and start to pull them apart to give us some room to slide through. I am making progress as Qais comes up from behind and helps me, our joint effort ultimately ripping the stakes off of their rails. We practically jump through the hole and sprint to the front door. "OPEN THE DOOR, YOU PIECE OF FILTH! LET US HELP HER!" Qais shouts as he's about to rip the door off its hinges. I'm about to help him when a teenage boy hesitantly opens the door, looking at us with wide, fearful eyes. "I'm so sorry, but can you please show me where my sister is? She's the one screaming and laughing and I need to help her." I ask between panicked gulps of air. The boy nods and grabs my hand, gesturing for Qais to follow.

The boy moves surprisingly quick as he takes us through the halls that haunt my nightmares. Every wall is covered with paintings of Damian and his mother, their piercing neon green eyes burning through our skulls. This, along with my sister's screams booming through the halls makes my head spin, but I remind myself that this isn't even the worst fucking part of all this. And before I know it, the boy stops in front of a large black door that is slightly ajar. I wince as my sister continues to scream and laugh and the last thing I want to do is go in there and face the inevitable, but we've already lost so much time. Qais and I thank the boy but before I can ask for his name, he's already gone, abandoning us both in this hellscape of a home. I then turn to Qais, take a deep breath, and give him a solid nod as we both push open the door, ready as we will ever be to take on this impossible task.

The first thing I see is my sister, but her back is turned towards us. She is frozen in place, seemingly staring at the stone wall in front of her. Her ripped dress, if anyone can even call it that at this point, is covered in blood and the stench of it suffocates me. Her once beautiful, long wavy blonde hair is tangled, dull, and matted. The room is just as dilapidated as her, covered in dust and splattered with all kinds of broken, misplaced items. I go over to the window and open the tattered curtains, letting in the setting sun's rays. I then turn around and walk over to my sister slowly. "Marwa?" I call for her gently. "It's me, Ana Li, your sister. I'm here to help you with delivering your baby." I attempt to smile as she quickly turns around, revealing her pale, drenched, gaunt body and sunken face. Her large brown eyes are tinged with red but they somehow still sparkle at the sight of me. "Ana Li!! You're here, you're here!" She attempts to walk towards me but I can already see that the glowing stone is half way out of her already, forcing her to waddle. As I am about to approach her to help, Qais speaks. "I can see that you're already so far along, Marwa! Do you want me to carry you to the bed so your sister can help you with the last bit?" She nods fervently and extends her arms towards him. He quickly walks over and lifts her up, leading her to the bed and setting her down as gently as he could. I follow closely behind and shower her with empty praises. "It's been hurting me so much, but I'm willing to do it for Damian and our family!" She hurriedly tells me before she screams as another contraction comes along. Qais quickly summons some white willow bark into his palm, putting some into her mouth. "Chew on this. It will help with the pain, okay? You're almost there, sweetheart," he encourages. She starts to chew and does start to relax a little which lets me get to work. I see that the stone has now stretched her vagina out so much because of its base being so wide. Its green fluorescence almost blinds me but I can see enough to make out the icicle-like shape. Her inner thighs and legs are covered in flaring varicose veins of the same color and are quickly spreading to the rest of her body. The poison is doing its magic. "Okay Marwa, I need you to lift your legs up for me and keep pushing, okay? I'm going to help down here and make sure the baby comes out smoothly." She laughs maniacally, but follows my instructions. I look at Qais for a moment and give him a tight smile. "Continue to encourage her, Qais. It helps." He nods and sits next to my sister, soothing her with sweet nothings about the future she will never have. I feel myself getting angry and use this energy to work on pulling out this murder weapon. I wrap my hands the best I can around it and pull. Hard. The stone moves an inch, but Marwa shrieks and her legs start to shake violently, which makes me stop. She grabs Qais's arm and digs her nails into it, making him groan in pain although he tries to hide it. I hear her vagina rip and blood starts to gush out, pooling on the yellowed, frayed bedsheets. I am typically not affected when seeing blood but I felt like I was going to vomit right then and there. "I am so sorry, Marwa, I'm so so sorry. Just keep breathing, okay?"

There's nothing I can do to make her feel better. All I can do is make her suffer till the very end. I pull on the stone again and this time I go for longer, determined to end this nightmare. The film of sweat forming on my hands threatens my tight hold and Marwa's shrieks reach notes that I never thought existed, making my tinnitus worse. My head is spinning, the bed is drenched in blood, and Qais tries his best to comfort her to no avail. After what feels like an eternity, I feel the stone's base sink into the bed, leaving behind a rotten, bloody hole where my sister's uterus is supposed to be.

I can't take my eyes off of this abomination. My eyes well up with tears as I realize that my sister will be parting from me soon. This is what happens when parents prioritize perception over acceptance and support. Their kids fall into the wrong hands and the world eats them up little by little until they're on the brink of death. I slowly push the stone off the bed but it breaks at the slightest pressure. I guess now that it is not feeding on Marwa's life force it's lost its strength. Her body is now limp and her breathing shallow. She is now staring up at the ceiling with glassy eyes with tears falling down the sides of her face. The ringing in my ears is now starting to subside but I'm now lightheaded and can hardly keep my balance.

"Lay next to her. She doesn't have long." Qais whispers as his tears start to slip out one by one. I notice that his left arm is full of scratches but I don't think he even feels it right now. My body starts to shake as I creep up next to my sister, tears marking my trail. I put my head down on her pillow and caress her face. "I should have never left," I whisper. "I should have stayed here with you so I could protect you. I was so selfish and I'm so sorry, Marwa." I take a shaky breath before I continue. "It should have been me that was on this bed. Not you." Qais looks at me with wide, disbelieving eyes, shaking his head, but I ignore him. "I would have done anything to save you from this fate. As your big sister, I failed you and I understand if you're angry with me". I can't speak anymore and start sobbing. I feel her head turning towards me and see through my tears that she's smiling. I'm glad that she has no idea what's going on or what's happening to her, but seeing her smile only makes me cry harder. I lean towards her and kiss her forehead over and over again. "Say hello to Soma'a for me, okay?" I feel her give me a weak nod and that's when I feel the last of her warm breaths hit my face. It's over. She's dead and I helped make sure of that. I grab her tiny body and hug it tightly, screaming over and over again that I'm sorry. Qais has his head in his hands, trying to muffle his own sobs.

This goes on for a few minutes before I hear someone speak. "Have you finally realized that all roads lead to me?" My blood runs cold. I haven't heard his voice in years but I would recognize it from anywhere. It's slightly more raspy and hoarse than I remember but it's him alright. My sobs have quieted and I see that Qais has lifted his head, staring at a point right behind me. His face quickly contorts into an expression of anger and I don't need more confirmation than that. Damian has finally graced us with his presence. I slowly turn around to meet the ever familiar nauseating gaze of this pathetic creature. His shirt hangs loosely on his lithe frame and his pants do the same. He never liked being so skinny but from a distance, it always made him look taller than he actually was. His skin is somehow a golden brown despite not ever seeing the sun and his pin straight, light brown hair has grown longer since we've last seen each other. It now lies at his waist. His smile is wide and full of blinding white sharp teeth. My feet find the floor and I stand up with Marwa's limp body in my arms. I don't break eye contact as I spit in his face. "You've become desperate." I say through clenched teeth. 

He turns away from me as the spit hits him and quickly washes it off with his hand, chuckling. "That is something I have always loved about you, Ana Li. Your indomitable fighting spirit. Unlike your poor fragile sister, you're worthwhile to break." Qais quickly crawls across the bed and attempts to strike Damian but he misses. Something about Damian is that what he lacks in physical strength he makes up for in speed. "You're NOT leaving this room, do you hear me!?" Qais shouts before he throws a broken drawer in Damian's direction. This time, he gets his shoulder and Damian stumbles to the ground. Qais quickly charges towards him but I yell at him to stop. "If you get close, he'll poison you just like he poisoned me and you'll end up struggling to get out of bed for months at a time. It's not worth it." I walk over to stand in front of Qais, but keep facing Damian to make sure that he doesn't try to sneakily attack us. I pretend to adjust Marwa's body in my arms while I grab a small pouch from my pocket, shoving it into Qais' own. It will prove useful if he remains patient.

Damian slowly stands up, laughing once again. "You're such a masochist, Ana Li. You know that I have the anti-venom that would fix all of these issues you're having. Why make yourself suffer so much?" I roll my eyes as I will not explain to him what he already knows. Curing myself will ultimately tie me to him for eternity and I'd rather die a thousand deaths than ever give him the satisfaction of being his. "I don't have time to argue with you. What will now happen is that me and Qais will leave with Marwa, clean her up, and give her a proper burial. There's nothing else to discuss." Damian's smile drops and I could practically see the steam coming out of his ears. "You selfish bitch!" He roars. "You were willing to sacrifice your sister and your family just so you could realize your crude fantasies of an independent life! Not to mention, you were even willing to deny me my right to have you as my own and build a life together! Killing your sister was supposed to be a lesson, how fucking dumb are you to still not see that I know what's best for you!?"

I feel Qais' hands on my shoulders as he slowly leads us to the open door. It seems that he has picked up on what I plan to do. Damian continues to yell at me. "It's because you've been a whore, huh? It seems that my mother's ex boytoy has used her valuable lessons on you, huh? That's why you're so unwilling to come back to me. All you care about is when he'll give you your next orgasm! I KNEW IT. YOU'RE A FUCKING SLUT!" Damian's foaming at the mouth and his eyes somehow glow brighter as he readies himself to lunge at me and all I am thinking is that I wish I could kill him right then and there. I wish I could use my abilities and make him suffer for hours. Just like he did to my sister. I wish I could kill my father and mother. The people who made her vulnerable to this kind of abuse. I wish I could kill his mother for raising such a beast and for taking advantage of a younger Qais. I want to indulge and swim in their suffering, but alas, I can't. At least not yet.

As I am thinking this, I notice that Damian is looking at me with a different kind of expression. Not one of anger or malice, but of fear. His eyes are about to bulge out of his eye sockets and he slowly recoils from us. I don't quite process this fully as Qais takes this as an opportunity to catapult the contents of the small pouch I gave him earlier at Damian. The smell of cinnamon floods the air and it sends Damian into a fit of convulsions. Qais lifts me up and I tighten my hold on Marwa's now cold body as he runs, attempting to remember the way the boy led us to that room, but backwards. We're both struggling until the boy appears seemingly out of thin air and gestures for Qais to follow him. A pained roar echoes throughout the manor and is quickly followed by aggravated wails. I close my eyes and try to get those awful sounds out of my head. The wind raises goosebumps all over my body as Qais sprints through the hallways. I hear a door opening and I hear Qais's feet run through grass instead of slamming Italian granite. I open my eyes again and we're outside once more. I see the door close but no longer see the boy. The world around us is pitch black and I cannot see the gate we broke, but Qais can as he quickly communicates with the plants around us to act as guides.

Once Qais reaches his motorcycle, he sets me down and gestures for me to give Marwa to him. "Don't worry. I'll make sure she's secure. Get on your bike and I'll follow you. You know this city better than I do." I nod quickly and as I'm about to give him Marwa, Qais stumbles. "What's wrong!? What is it!?" I ask, panicked. I then remember the scratches on his left arm and see that they are now glowing an ominous neon green. My sister had accidentally poisoned him while she was grabbing onto him to relieve herself from the pain. "Oh, God... I'll hold onto Marwa, but do you think you can make it to Tuba?" He nods and gives me a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, I'm just a little lightheaded. It's nothing too bad." I purse my lips and hum doubtfully, but I don't have time to think of another solution as I see Damian forcefully burst the front door open and come charging at us. However, he's moving much slower than expected as it seems like something is pulling him from behind. Me and Qais take advantage of this and he gets on his motorcycle while I attach Marwa to me from behind with my belt. I quickly put on my helmet and check on Qais. He's a bit wobbly but it seems like he's managing a lot better than expected for now. We need to get to Tuba as quickly as possible so she can assess the damage properly and so we can properly bury Marwa. At this point, I'm vaguely aware that I have the corpse of my sister as a backpack but this isn't the time to get morbid and existential. I turn on my motorcycle and accelerate as quickly as I can and make sure that Qais is following me. I know these roads like the back of my hand even after being dead for a few decades. I keep on holding onto Marwa's leg to make sure she doesn't fly off of me but it seems like the belt is doing its job. 

I hear Qais's motorcycle for the first half of the drive but then all of a sudden I hear him making a sudden turn. I see him to my left going towards the dark abyss and start to panic. I call for him several times but he doesn't seem to hear me. The venom must have got to him and convinced him to hurt himself somehow. I quickly make the same turn and try to catch up to him, but before I do, he crashes and his body launches about twenty feet from his motorcycle. "QAIS!" I shout as I quickly brake about ten feet from him. I take off my belt and apologize as I gently set Marwa on the side of the road next to some bushes. I then run over to him and take off his helmet, assessing him for any obvious head injuries. I don't see much of anything except that he is dazed and constantly calling for me. "I'm here, Qais! I'm here, don't worry." I say as I unzip his jacket and check for anything there. I immediately notice that there are neon green streaks that have traveled up his left arm since the last time we saw them. They're now almost at his shoulder. "Qais, don't you dare lose consciousness on me, you understand? Stay awake, I'm going to get help." He slowly nods and tries to get up but I push him back down. "Don't move. The more stress you exert on yourself, the worse it gets. Just focus on staying awake, okay?" He groans as I feel around his legs for his phone. I finally feel its outline and practically rip open the pocket it's in to take it out. My fingers tremble as I try to dial Tuba's number but I manage. It rings for a few seconds before the eloquent, well-paced voice that I know so well answers. "Hello, Qais, have you managed to find Ana Li yet? You've yet to update me." I let out a resigned chuckle. "Hey, Tuba. He's found me alright, but I need you to come right now. My dead sister is laying on the side of the road and Qais is poisoned. He crashed his motorcycle while we were getting back and I don't know how long it will take before Damian finds us." A few seconds pass before Tuba answers. "I'm...so sorry, Ana Li. Don't worry, I have tracked down your location and I'll send a hovercar to pick you up. I'll stay on the phone with you until it arrives." I let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, Tuba. I don't know what we'd do without you..."

I suddenly become more aware of my surroundings and realize that the reason I could see Qais at all was because he happened to crash into a clearing full of bioluminescent mushrooms. Even the trees have some strange sparkle surrounding them. "Do you know why everything's glowing and sparkling around us? I've never seen anything like this." Tuba is not quite sure about it but says she's looking it up but Qais smirks and answers hoarsely. "It's because I'm trying to protect us both from being detected." I raise an eyebrow. "By making everything light up?" He shakes his head slowly. "That's what we see, but on the outside, if he's out there, it's like we don't exist." Tuba then interjects. "That means the hovercar won't be able to find you either." I take a deep breath. "Great, so we have no way of getting to safety and you're getting weaker by the minute. Do you want to die?" I glare at him and lean my head forward for an answer. "Well, you know how the venom works better than anyone. Tell me how I can overcome the side effects so I can drive us home." I roll my eyes at the unfounded confidence, but I roll with it. It's not like there are many other options to consider. "Essentially, the only reason the venom works is because it is preying on a fear of yours. If you somehow overcome this fear, it temporarily subsides before it finds something else. Although, since you've gotten a very low dose of it, it probably only has the capacity on preying on one fear, so there's a very high chance that it could fully leave your system if we tackle that." Qais's smile fades and he turns his head away from me. Tuba sighs. "I guess this is the perfect time to tell you." My eyebrows furrow together in confusion. "What? Tell me what?" I look between the phone and Qais, waiting for an answer. Eventually, Qais finally says something.

"Us meeting a year ago was not the first time we met and my fear is that you won't ever remember who I am to you."