Marked ~Six~

Are you marked?

“Are we alone?” I ask, my wet clothes almost forgotten. What I am about to do is crazy, I know it. Then again, my secret is crazy too. I didn’t believe it when Nana told me the truth.

 

Ben looks confused, but shouts out anyway. It takes a few minutes, but a woman enters the kitchen. “What is it, Benjy?”

 

I giggle at the name and the woman’s sharp hazel eyes snap to me. “Who are you?”

 

I suddenly remember who I am made out to be. The tips of my black hair are ice blue, swirling around my curls. My tongue ring is blue, just like my eyes. As you can tell, it’s my favorite color. “I…I’m Madisyn Angel,” For some reason the words sound strange as they come out of my mouth. Like I actually care what this woman thinks.

 

‘Benjy’ steps in then, walking forward a few steps. “Mom, this is Madisyn. She needed some clothes…so we’re just going to go up to my room.” The truth is a flimsy story. Ben’s mom glares at me.

 

“Excuse me? Benjamin, do you think I was born yesterday? No one is taking their clothes off. I raised you better…” Ben’s cheek turn the tickle-me pink and I try to hold in another giggle.

 

“Mom!” He protests, glancing at me. “She’s my friend! I accidentally spilled my drink on her while we were in my car. I’m just going to get her something dry to wear. It’s the least I can do…”

 

I’m grateful for his lie. Thinking that suddenly makes me realize that I feel lighter than I usually am. I’ve almost forgotten what I was going to do. He leads me to the stairs, his mom following us. “You’re father and I were just friends too! Look at what happened with that!”

 

This time I do laugh as Ben sighs, pushing me up the stairs. His mother continues to shout things at us and that she’s going to check on us, so we better be ten feet apart. There are numerous pictures along the staircase. He leads me to the third door down and sheepishly closes his door behind him.

 

“Sorry about that. Mom can be a bit…over the top sometimes.” I glance around his room. His bedspread is black, so it matches his carpet and bed frame. On his wall are many paintings and I don’t mean on canvas. His walls are covered with little drawings.

 

“It’s okay…” I don’t really remember what having a mom is like. It’s been four years and I can barely remember her face.

 

He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “So…er, is there a reason you wanted to be alone?”

 

I clench my fists, taking a deep breath. How can I tell him without seeming crazy? How will I make sense?

 

Taking one more deep breath, I begin to push the left side of my jeans down. He stops me, “What? Wait, no, just…what?”

 

I almost smile at his confusion. “I need to show you something,” I say softly, my face solemn.

 

“Okay…” he says reluctantly, deciding to trust me. In the back of my mind I hear a voice snip he shouldn’t trust anyone, let alone you, so easily.

 

Finally the spiral is showing, and I can’t meet his eyes. I don’t know if he knows the significance, but I still feel vulnerable. I never should have done this. “Hey…we have the same mark…”

 

Does that mean he doesn’t know? I finally look into his dark eyes, realizing I’ve passed the point of no return. “Do you know what the Mark means?”

 

Ben looks cautious, but still curious. “No,” he breathes, glancing back down at my hip again. “But you do.”

 

I nod, pulling my shorts back up. “I…I have to tell you now. I’m sorry.”

 

His brows pull together and he runs a hand through his brunette hair. “Why are sorry? I’ve wanted to know what my birthmark means my whole life.”

 

For some reason I recall that I don’t know how old he is. “How old are you?”

 

“Okay, you need to stop changing subjects so fast,” He said, raising one of his eyebrows at me. “I’ll be eighteen in December. Now can you please just tell me what the hell is going on?”

 

“Sorry,” I say weakly. “There’s no easy way to explain this, really. I guess I’ll just to have to start at what I know to be the beginning.” I walk to his bed and sit down, leaning against the headboard. He grins the tiniest bit and lies down on his stomach so he’s facing me.

 

“A long, long time ago, way before our parents were even an idea, our ancestors were made up a group. There were six of them, and everyone saw them as ordinary people. But the six were cursed one night by a vengeful mage. They were each marked with a spiral, and their descendants were also cursed to bear their burden.

 

“The six became known for their skill and ease with crime. Many called them Fallen Angels, shunning them. They were forced to retreat to the shadows. The Fallen Angels were known as assassins from then on. It’s said that they had a thirst for killing, that they were crazed with bloodlust.” Ben is staring at me, his mouth hanging open. I stayed silent, remembering the day my grandmother had confided this in me when she’d seen my mark.

 

“So we come from…assassins?” Ben looks skeptical and then confused. “My older brother, he doesn’t have the Mark.”

 

Before I can answer, my eyes fall on a word painted in big loopy letters. “Is that how you spell your name?”

 

“What?” He looks around and nods. “Yeah, my mom wanted a unique spelling.”

 

Benjamyn. I sigh, not liking how this all comes together. If everything makes sense, that means it’s real. “You’re brother’s name….does it happen to be in the Bible?”

 

“Er…yeah, I guess so. Caine and Abel, right? My brother’s name is Abel. Now that I think about it, my dad’s family is pretty religious.” No, no, no. I’d always thought it was a coincidence, an ironic one that my brother’s name was Elijah and his sister was known as the Sinner. Now I knew that it was more than just coincidence.

 

“What are you so worried about? So we’ve been ‘marked’, I think it’s kind of cool. We just have an interesting family history.” I hadn’t told Ben the worst part yet.

 

“Ben, you don’t get it. We bear the burden of the Fallen Angels. What the locals thought, it was true. All of the descendants are supposed to have the qualities of a fallen angel, that’s where their name came from. We…sooner or later…we’re going to have a monster inside of us; we’re going to be monsters. We’ll have a lust for blood that will probably never be sated.”

Author's Note

"The secret side of me, I never let you see
I keep it caged but I can't control it
So stay away from me, the beast is ugly
I feel the rage and I just can't hold it

It's scratching on the walls, in the closet, in the halls
It comes awake and I can't control it
Hiding under the bed, in my body, in my head
Why won't somebody come and save me from this, make it end?

I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster"
-Monster, Skillet

Reviews

[Sunny Skye]

I like this chapter, and the mom...yep shes crazy lol. Good job! uhh i like skillet the lyrics go well with the story i guess this is why you put there song up there lol.

Good Job once again.

-SkyeBlanco

[Amanda]

Haha i was listening to it while writing this i think

[Sunny Skye]

Oh cool its a good song

[Ahmad Cox]

Wow, amazing lead up. I keep loving this more and more.

[Amanda]

Haha well i'll ty to get the next chapter up soon :)

[Rhea752]

I love that song!! Well done I can't wait to read the next chapter :D

[Amanda]

me too!! :D

[Rhea752]

lolzies :) Skillet is so awesome :D

[Sophie]

omg, please, more. now. I love this, just
ahhhhh!

[Amanda]

You say that a lot :P (ahhh)

[Sophie]

i do indeedy