Thursday, January 28, 2016

Week 2 Storytelling: I Got Your Heart, You Got Bullet Holes


(Image from: Pixabay)

"I Got Your Heart, You Got Bullet Holes"

I grabbed a candy bar as soon as I saw the clerk behind the counter turn around. It was a brief moment, but brief enough for me.

It was winter, and really all Colt and I needed was a new lighter, but I had grabbed the first thing I found. I mean, that's how it is.

Beggars can't be choosers, right?

But as I slipped it into my over-sized purse, the clerk shouted, "Hey! Put that back!"

I staggered back in shock. I never got caught.

I had two options: return the candy bar or run like hell away.

I chose the latter, and I ran out of the gas station, the clerk yelling behind me. He chased me only as long until I darted in and out and between alleyways, until finally he lost me.

I walked back to my alley, our alley, our home.

"Bullet, you look like you've been..." Colt started to say.

"Caught," I said like an exhale. I was out of breath.

"Damn, so Ragnarok's coming, yeah?" He joked, with playfully wide eyes. He lifted a hand to the sky shouted, "Hail Odin! Hail Thor! Save us from sheer destruction."

"Well Ragnarok will bring destruction and then rebirth of the world any way, so..." I shook my head. This was one of many things we liked to discuss. When we weren't in our alley, we spent our time in the Public Library, which always felt like a second home. "Never mind."

I sat on a lumpy pillow in the ally way. The wind felt like icicles stabbing through my leather jacket and black jeans. We needed a lighter, we needed a fire.

He sat next to me, shivering. "So, no lighter?"

I groaned. "No."

"Well, you know...we could get naked and that would--"

"Just stop while you're ahead, Colt," I said, laughing. It was just the other day that we admitted to eachother that we loved one another, but there was still an awkward tension.

We hadn't kissed since that day.

"If only I could just snap my fingers and make fire." Messing around, I snapped my fingers, but then in between my finger and thumb, in fact, was a spark of fire.

"What the...?" Colt whispered.

"What the hell was that?" I finished his sentence.

"I don't know," Colt said. "But do it again."

With childish curiosity I snapped my fingers once more, and it worked!

"I don't know how you're doing that, but I'm not going to question it too much," he said. "We need fire."

Colt gathered newspapers and cardboard, placing them in the middle of the alleyway, and I set it ablaze.

He scooted closer to me, the fire radiated heat onto me, but I could also feel his warmth like a hot coal along my skin and into my heart. It felt like there was a fire coming from within me.

I looked at him, his messy tangles of bottle-dyed black hair falling in front of his eyes. My eyes flickered from his lips, but then to his neck.

Through his pale skin I could see his blue veins, and I excitedly thought of the red blood within. I felt myself leaning closer to him.

I could smell the metallic of his blood, and the sweetness of his flesh. I bent down, and Colt looked into my eyes expectedly, probably expecting a kiss, I'm sure. But I lowered my mouth to his neck.

"Bite him, drink him, eat him," a deep voice whispered, and it seemed to be coming from my mind.

My body was moving automatically, almost instructively as I leaned into his neck, and I sunk my teeth into his skin. I broke the skin, and blood filled my mouth.

Colt cried out and pushed me. He broke me from my stupor and I scooted away from him.

"Bullet?What the hell was that?" Colt demanded.

"I don't know!" I cried out, but my eyes watched the blood drip from his neck, and the bite-shaped flesh that hung loosely.

"What happened to your teeth?" He stood up, and stepped back, in what I could only assume was fear. "And your eyes!"

My heart was hammering against my ribs, my blood rushed in my ears. "What do you mean?"

"They're, they're..." Colt stammered.

"They're what?" I screamed.

"Sharp and pointed!" He said, and backed further away from me.

To my horror I felt my teeth, and each one felt sharp and pointed, almost like shark teeth. "And my eyes?"

"They're bright red," he said. "And..."

"And what?" I yelled.

"You have horns!"

"What?" I whispered, and felt two long, curled, sharp horns on top of my head. "What's wrong with me?"

I looked down and my outfit had even changed from my leather jacket and jeans into a tight leather corseted dress. It was skimpy, but the strange heat still radiated from within me.
(Image of Bullet's transformation from: Sasha

"Nothing wrong..." The same voice from earlier whispered. "You are awakening..."

Suddenly a figure appeared before me. He had bright red eyes, dark tanned skin, and like me: a set of sharp teeth. He wore a loose black shirt, and tight black pants. He had long, flowing, wavy black hair. In his hair were two long, black, curled horns.

"Hello, my kin," he said.

"Who are you?" I screamed.

"I am a Rakshasa," he said with a wink. "And as are you, Rakshasi."

Author's Note
First of all this is not the only story with Colt and Bullet! If you liked them, read my story from Week 1, "Colt Collides with Bullet"!

This week I read Part A and B of the Public Domain Edition of Ramayana. I was completely enthralled by the Rakshasa, since they are basically demons and I am interested in demons in any kind of mythology or lore.

However, the Rakshasa and Rakshasi in Ramayana are hideous creatures, and portrayed more as monsters. So, I wanted to humanize them. I also gave them more common characteristics of demons that we are more familiar with.

I write Young Adult Fantasy, so that is why I gave the Rakshasa a modern, Young Adult spin onto it!

I hope you enjoyed this story! I may be writing more about Colt and Bullet, and Bullet's new life as a Rakshasi.

5 comments:

  1. Wow, that was intense!
    I really enjoyed the dialogue here; I just had to keep reading to find out what happened next. I really like how you didn't just give all of it away at once, but instead you inched one detail at a time, drawing your reader closer.
    I would love to read more about Colt and Bullet. I would also like to know what ends up happening between the two now that she is a rakshasi.

    Great work!

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  2. Lore, I really enjoyed reading your story about Bullet turning into a Rakshasi. Similarly to what Whitney said, I liked the dialogue between the two characters. I lack in my stories dialogue, therefore I will try and write dialogue in my next story. The ending was fantastic though because it really got my wondering what is going to happen next. It left me questioning all the possible outcomes after she finds out who she really is.

    Anyways, it was a great read!

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  3. So after reading the first weeks I had to read this one as well. I had a feeling from the layout this was headed to vampire. Well done though. I feel like the comments about Thor etc are a little high minded for two kids on the streets. If you are going to have them talking about ancient mythology you need to introduce where they got that information from. It could be as easy as their cardboard house is covered in comic books depicting epic sagas from time long past. Anyway I'm not getting credit for this comment but just wanted to read this one too. Very awesome and glad you found your demon niche!

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    Replies
    1. Thank you SO much for more of your helpful input! Seriously! I think you've helped me make my stories even better. I agree with you on the whole mythology knowledge thing, so I added an explanation of how they are so seemingly well read and know a lot about ancient Norse mythology! Anyways, thank you, and I hope you read my future stories so that I can get more of your VERY helpful advice. Again, thanks!

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  4. Hey, I thought I’d read your week two story as well. I am going to leave comments as I read and hopefully you’ll be able to follow them once I am done, just as I did before.

    I staggered back in shock. I never got caught.

    -- What a life this must be to live! I can only imagine, yet I feel like I was right there in the gas station with her as she was lifting the necessities that they need. That’s crazy how people in better situations swear that they “need” so much, but yet Bullet and Colt are making it happen with the things that they have.

    "Damn, so Ragnarok's coming, yeah?" He joked, with playfully wide eyes. He lifted a hand to the sky shouted, "Hail Odin! Hail Thor! Save us from sheer destruction."

    -- I like how you gave a link to a brief description of what Ragnarok is. I found this to be very helpful, especially since I am unfamiliar with what that is. The page that you directed me to was perfect and straight to the point with just a few sentences. I know feel more prepared to continue reading your story. (:

    "If only I could just snap my fingers and make fire." Messing around, I snapped my fingers, but then in between my finger and thumb, in fact, was a spark of fire.

    -- oh wow, that’s cray cray. I remember in the beginning that she grew horns and black nails while she was trying to snag some things from the corner store. Looks like some things are starting to happen in Kali’s life, but Colt’s not complaining.

    Every time! Every time I make a comment, in the next paragraph something happens! She transformed and couldn’t stop herself from biting Colt. Great job, again!

    Quick question, is Bullet and Kali the same person?

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