Queen Mab lived at the Center of the World. Her influence was far and wide and there was not a magical being who did not know her name and what she stood for. She stood for the old ways and all that they had contributed to the world. She lived alone, destined to be alone for the rest of her life, if that is what you call what she did. She survived. Though there was enough knowledge of the Old Ways to sustain her, she was weakened. It was all that she could do to watch the world around her fall to the new ways. As she felt herself fade, she was saved. By what? She was not sure, but a crystal shone and she found herself staring at the lone crystal. In it, a witch. A very skilled, talented witch. She had done something that could not be imagined. She had unleashed power all across the globe. Mab felt the power stream into all the girls. The girls. And him...the bright glimmer. All that power. Then another glimmer shone out and Mab walked out to it.
Shalliat Robins walked through the harsh streets of New York, cold and weary. She had no place to go. Not anymore. Abandoned and dejected, she found herself rushing past everyone on the street. A tear slipped from her eyes and soaked the street as she rushed through an alley and she found herself alone, once again. After a minute, she sunk against the wall and began to sob harder than she had ever sobbed before. She had been poor all her life. She had been a poor nobody and her family had struggled to make ends meet for years until her father died, then things got worse. She had never thought of herself as weak until she broke down at her father's funeral; the funeral had been the low light of her life. The lowest possible point she could actually reach. She felt even worse when she became addicted to drugs and alcohol and her mom had caught her. Her mom had told her the truth, or her version, that she would be just like the rest of the people on her block, a crack-headed nothing. Hearing this, Shalliat had left, deciding not to return. She had been so busy wondering and thinking that she did not realized that she was being watched. " Hello, little girl." a voice said. She looked around to see who or what had just spoken. " Who is there." she said, sniffling and standing to her feet. In the shadows, a pair of yellow eyes looked out at her and Shalliat gasped. She stepped back and tripped over a garbage can, causing the garbage to fall and her to fall over too. As she moved backwards, she found herself being cut up by broken glass. " Come on, girly, I am not that ugly." the thing smirked, showing its sharp teeth, " Come and give us a kiss.". The thing walked closer to her and she screamed out, but the thing grabbed her by the throat, " No, no. Not outsiders." it whispered, licking her neck. At that moment, Shalliat felt something rush through her! She lived another life, the life of another woman, one in a dank place, fighting what seemed like a million demons. Then, in a flash, she was a man, in the basement of a high tech facility and she fought for her life. Or he. He fought for his life. She quickly found herself in her body, being licked by the thing. She felt empowered and all of a sudden, she kicked it off of her! She punched at the demon, hitting it with all she had, causing it to fly into the building opposite of her. She looked around, trying to see something she could hit him with and she found a broom by the door. She raced to the door and grabbed the broom, breaking it in half. She stopped for a minute, she had broken the broom in half and moved toward the stalled vampire. The vampire got to his feet and ran at her, but she stuck the broken broom into its chest! She instantly knew it was wrong and she withdrew the broom and retried, this time finding the heart and a feeling of relief washed over her. She looked at the pile of dust in awe, then dropped the other half and ran away from the alley.
Mab was impressed; she had heard about the Slayers, but had never seen one in action before. The Vampire Slayer, a fierce warrior created to fight the demon. Into every generation, a slayer is born. One girl in all the world, Chosen to fight the forces of evil. Meddlesome little harlots, always messing up plans that would reveal to the world what actually exists. Always threatening to do what no others could do. " Mistress, have you sent for us?" Magashon, a very ancient vampire asked. Mab looked at him, " I did indeed, it seems as if there is an urgent surge of good. Evil stands little chance against such a force of good." Mab screeched, " I truly think that an end might be near". " What would make you think that, Mistress?" Magashon asked. Mab turned to him, " I saw it. But do not be alarmed. I also saw a girl. Kill her." Mab said. Without a word, Magashon nodded and walked out of the door.
As Shalliat walked through the hallway of her apartment building and stopped as she got to the door. She hesitated for a moment, trying to decide what she should do. If she just left, there could be more of those things, but if she stayed, she could be verbally abused again. The choice was simple...so simple it was complicated. As she stood outside the door, she heard a shuffle of feet and could feel the floor just inside the door move before the door swung open! Her mother looked out at her expectantly, then rushed to hug her, " Shalliat! I am so sorry, baby, I did not mean..." but Shalliat shushed her. Shalliat walked over to her little brother's bedroom and checked on him, then walked back to the living room, " Momma, there is something wrong with me." she said, looking down at her hands, " I am...different." she said, looking back up at her mother. Her mother looked at her oddly, " Have you been using drugs again?" she asked, checking Shalliat's arms. Shalliat pushed her off, " NO! I am serious, I..." she stopped and noticed that the scratches were completely healed. Her mother looked at her arm also. Shalliat felt as if she was losing her mind. She could not stay, not now. " Mom, I have got to go!" she said, rushing out of the house, not bothering to shut the door.
As Shalliat's mother sat on the couch, her hands on her chin, she felt as if she should be out there looking for Shalliat, but where would she start? She got up and paced, looking out the window and onto the ground below. She cars passed by quickly and there was a distant roar from below and an even louder stillness. There was an odd sensation in her heart, a feeling of dread. Her daughter had slipped into drugs and alcohol and there was nothing she could do to help her daughter. She knew that Shalliat thought herself to be weak, but in her heart, she knew that Shalliat was not evil. But talking to her was like talking to herself. As she paced, she heard a knock on the door. She ran to it, opening it to see a pale man standing outside, " Can I help you?" she asked. " I need to see your daughter." Magashon smirked. A realization crept over her and she figured it out. That was Shalliat's supplier, " Come on in, I have something to say to you." she frowned, letting the odd man in.
Shalliat hit the streets once again, trying to figure herself out. As she walked down the street, she found herself in a magic store. She ran into a guy immediately and he smiled, " Hello, my name is Cale. I own this shop, can I help you with something?" he asked. Shalliat smiled weakly and nodded, " Mistress Nahgin, the palm reader, I need to see her." she said, looking past him and running to the seer. Mistress Nahgin welcomed her with opened arms and grabbed her hands, not bothering to look her in the face. Mistress Nahgin took out a pen and began to mark her hand. After she was finished, there was a picture of a twilight. " What..." Shalliat asked, snatching her hand back. " You are in danger. You are Chosen. A slayer of evil and everyone you have ever loved will die." Nahgin said, " They are dying now." she said. Shalliat looked at her fearfully and ran out of the shop.
When Shalliat got to her home, she ran into the living room to see blood smeared over the walls and pieces of her mother. All of her mind faltered and for a brief second, there was no trace of Shalliat left, only the Slayer. Shalliat brought herself back to her senses, running to her brother's room. When she got there, the last piece of her soul fluttered from her with a breath. She went to her room and pulled out her syringe and wrap. She wrapped her arm and put the syringe needle to her arm, about to shoot up, but she stopped. Her mother's words echoed through her like a whisper through an empty hall. Suddenly the moment hit her, the moment when she wanted revenge. She pulled off the wrap and flung it across the room and broke the syringe, calling the police before leaving the house forever. When she finally made her way back to the Magic Store, she was shocked to see Mistress Nahgin waiting for her. " You will need this." Nahgin said, handing her an ordinary key.
As Shalliat grabbed the key, she felt the room spin and suddenly she was somewhere else. The thought flashed in her mind, Where am I?', and as if reading her mind, a voice answered, " The Center of the World." Magashon smiled behind her, wiping blood off his mouth, " Sorry, I just had a big snack." and Shalliat clenched her fist. They connected through their eyes. Shalliat felt it, the rage and the pain and she channeled the man from before's anger and the woman from before's anger and she took a stance. Magashon smiled, showing all his fangs, and he ran at her! Magashon grabbed her by the neck, but Shalliat punched him, causing him to drop her to her feet and she kicked his feet from under him! Shalliat jumped back and Magashon roared, causing the cave to vibrate. Shalliat had noticed a woman standing on a cliff just off to the side, far enough away so that she would not be harmed. From nowhere, Magashon had a sword, swinging it, causing Shalliat to do a back flip to avoid the blade, but Magashon was too fast! Magashon grabbed her and sunk his teeth into her. Blood spurted everywhere and Shalliat felt her body getting weaker and when she felt as if she would pass out, she reached down and found a stake. She looked over at the woman, Mistress Nahgin, who smiled and she used the stake to dust Magashon! As Magashon turned to dust, Shalliat fell. Mistress Nahgin walked over to her, transforming into someone else, " Poor, unfortunate girl. No one will ever know you...no one will cry for you. You are the end of a new beginning, a clink in the chain. How does that feel. How does it feel to be at the mercy of Queen Mab?" she smiled. Shalliat chuckled, blood spilling from her cheeks, " I...I read the stories...And, after I'm gone, everyone will believe you're just a figment of Arthurian lure. You'll be a memory." Shalliat smiled, " I may not be remembered, but neither will you." Shalliat said, smiling to herself. Shalliat knew that she would die and that being Chosen was just another word for dying young'. It had just occurred to her that she didn't care. She felt, for the first time, that she was strong. She was going to die, but she was okay with it and it was just now that she looked around and took in the view. The Center of the World. A cozy thought swam into her mind, she , unlike Mab, would be remembered by every slayer in the future. She would never fade.