They watched as she passed, her emerald eyes meeting each of theirs, connecting, beckoning them forward. They never had a chance. A thin wisp of cloth laced around her, covering just enough skin leave mystery and curiosity wavering in their minds.

Discarded news papers rolled down the street baring headlines about the tragic local death of a child murdered in a fire and his doleful parents who gave their lives to join him. The girl resentfully avoided them, remaining poised but obviously disturbed.

The moon shone above her, casting mystic shadows down the road. A mist followed her as she glided forward. Everything about her eluded mystery. Eeriness fell over the town.

Men, as well as women and children emerged from their homes, still dressed in their bed robes, drawn to her beauty. They followed her in a trance.

The girl glanced over her shoulder, gazing into the eyes of the people trailing behind her. Their eyes were so cold, so dead, yet so longing. Her charm was the only thing driving their unconscious minds closer to her. She let out a laugh, a cold laugh, yet so captivating and alluring.

There was no real measure of time in these moments. Reality hung on a thread carefully manipulated by the girl. She altered the wills of these people. They trudged behind her, helpless against her power.

Her dark hair fell down her back and swayed as she wafted down the road. She stroked each strand, sending shudders through the crowd. Her beauty was astounding. It was a sort of stunning grace and attraction that left them weak. It was a kind of gorgeousness never seen before, never held before by anyone.

She led them down the joyless road and out of the town. A forest lay before them, ominous with dark shadows and night ambiance, but she did not falter. She led them under the sea of darkness. There was no light now. Any moon light had been blocked by the dense leaves hovering above them. The faint muffled sound of their footfalls and the cries of night creatures was all that could be heard.

Their personal thoughts and desires fought against the girl’s power. Resistance against her hold on minds was growing, slowing her down. They wanted to break themselves free. She stopped, suddenly, completely releasing her grasp on their judgment, and listened as sanity returned to their foolish minds. She heard their murmurs of confusion. Fear hung in the air. She turned to face them, her eye brawls in perfect arches.

She screamed.

The people covered their ears, running frantically away from the sound. Nothing had ever made such a perfectly horrid noise before.

The girl darted her eyes directly into those of a man trying to flee. He stopped and turned to her. The chaos did not seize, but they did watch with curious attention. The man's eyes began to spin in his head. He screamed in agony, falling backwards, a sharp rock breaking his fall.

The girl stopped screeching and took her hold back onto their minds. They had been warned, and they would not challenge her again.

They began to walk in silence. The girl could see her husband and young son standing far ahead, waiting. Her pace quickened. In time, they reached a small clearing in the woods where her family stood. She took her husband and son’s hands into her own and stood with them, linked just as they always had been. The crowd of people stood in front of them, paralyzed. She could feel their anticipation.

The girl took a deep breath, readying herself. Hate welled inside her, turning her mind delirious with rage.

She summoned the children forward.

They stumbled away from the group, zombies of their normal selves. There were no giggles or laughter, only sunken faces.

The girl met the eyes of her husband. He nodded at her, and she gave a slight nod in return. She pulled out a match and struck it against a rock. A small flame flickered, shedding light against her face. Holding her breath, she moved closer to one of the children, a girl. The young girl stared into space with dead eyes, unresponding.
She stroked the child's soft, blond hair and caressed her face, almost feeling sorry for her. She knelt down and touched the flame to the girl’s slippers.

The fire started weak, but slowly grew until she was engulfed in flames. The smell of burning flesh consumed the expanse of forest. Her stomach churned, begging her to flee, but she stayed and watched until there was nothing left but the sickening remains of a charred corpse.

She could feel the strains in the adult's minds. She could feel their rage and agony, the same emotions that she had carried with herself for so long, but their faces remained perpetually rigid.

The girl looked back at her son. He wore vengeful, sinister smile, his face still baring deep burns.

One by one the children went up in flames. Shadows danced against the trees as the ravenous fire reached towards the stars, slowly seizing the fragile lives from each child. Only after the last child had burned did the flames sink to the ground, dying off with the wind.

The girl stood and gazed over her work, immorally satisfied. She turned back to her family and joined them. She grasped their hands as she released her grip on the adults. Shrieks immediately filled the darkness. Wails of heartbroken mother's and angry fathers shattered the silence. They tried to make sense of the horror, but were unable to comprehend the evil that had taken their children. They searched for the girl with the stunning beauty, but the girl and her husband and son had already disappeared into the night, dissolved into the wind.

The girl left one lone word echoing in their ears: avenged.