Zia woke up with a massive headache and a thirst like she hadn't drank anything in days.
She lay in Orion's bed with a blanket covering her.
She looked around remembering the brawl that had happened in the very room she lay in.
Suddenly, she felt cold as goosebumps rose on her skin.
Thinking about the whole situation was unnerving. What kind of monster was Damien and who was Orion? Why wasn't he afraid of that beast? Why wasn't he afraid of the darkness? She wondered.
Just then, Orion walked into his cabin.
Zia sat up and smoothed her hair nervously. He moved as though he had never gotten injured.
"How are you feeling?" He asked.
"I have a headache and I am a little tired, but I feel ok otherwise. What about you?" She asked.
Orion lifted his shirt to show Zia that his wound was healed.
"How did you do it?" He questioned her as he pulled his remaining wooden chair next to the bed, flipping it backwards as he straddled it. He studied Zia intently.
"I honestly don't know. I felt the urge to heal you. I am not sure how it works. I didn't know I could do that." She said, feeling confused.
Orion was silent, analyzing Zia's words.
"Where is Damien?" She asked.
"You don't have to worry about him for the moment." He assured her.
"Zia, do you realize what you have done?" Orion asked her.
She became thoughtful for a moment.
"I healed you." She replied.
"Yes. you healed me, but do you realize that is not normal?" Regular people don't walk around healing wounds and taking away people's pain without the use of medicine." He said.
"I know. I don't know what to make of this. I have been feeling different lately." She said as her eyes lowered to the floor. Her white hair fell towards the front of her face.
"Does Ansel know about this?" He asked.
"I am not sure. Ansel and Aeson just kept remarking at how quickly I was healing. They thought I wasn't going to live through recovery at first. I thought it was a little strange that I healed so quickly as well. My scars are almost gone, and I feel no pain. My shattered arm is perfect again." She said.
"I agree that it is strange. Have you noticed any additional abilities other than healing?" Orion asked her.
"No. Do you think I may be able to do other things?" She asked.
"There is a possibility." He replied.
Orion stood up from his seat and went to his nightstand drawer and pushed it out of the way. He opened two of the floor panels beneath it and pulled out a black lock box. He opened the lock box and took out an old leather-bound book.
He unfastened the book and began flipping the old, discolored pages.
"What is that?" Zia asked.
"Hopefully some answers." Orion replied as he sat back down on the wooden chair.
Zia felt like everything was just some bad dream. She wanted to find out about her past, but she didn't think that this is how it would be.
Orion stopped at a page in the book and handed it to Zia.
"Here, this is what Damien is." Orion said.
The page contained a drawing of a half man, half beast. It had fangs and claws like Damien with blazing red eyes.
The creature seemed to be fighting the urge to turn into a beast. There were words on the page in a language that Zia couldn't understand.
"Damien is a Human-demon hybrid. He is stronger than a human because of his demon side but he is still not the strongest type of demon. He has issues controlling his ability to shift. He has been hiding the fact that he is part demon for quite some time. He may have had someone mask it through magic." Orion said.
Zia was speechless. She had known Damien her whole life. He raised her from a baby. How did she not know this? How had she never seen this side of him? She wondered.
"Wait, the witch he uses to protect the borders. Maybe she has been helping him." Zia said.
"You might be right. Something must be going wrong since the darkness has been getting closer and he is having a hard time controlling his demon again." Orion said.
"So, what are you, Orion? Are you a human?" Zia asked.
"I am just me, I guess. I used to be a demon hunter. I have strength beyond the average human and I spent most of my life training to kill. I came to the circus to get rid of Damien but then I met you and found out he was responsible for you." He said as though he was trying to make sense of it himself.
"I felt I needed to stay close by. There was something special about you. The thought of Damien raising you was disturbing. Thank goodness for Ansel. I am not sure why you were left on his doorstep but he must have answers." He said.
Zia looked at Orion with tears in her eyes. You knew what he was this whole time? Why didn't you tell me?" Zia asked.
"I wasn't sure you were ready to hear the truth. I just kept to myself and tried to make sure things didn't get too bad." He said, looking away as though he realized he made a mistake by keeping this information from her.
He should have saved her from him. He thought
"When I met Gemini, I wanted to protect him too. My initial reason for coming here had changed because of you both.
Zia looked thoughtful.
"So, what am I?" She asked, pulling the blanket up to her neck.
Orion took the book from her and flipped through more pages. He stopped flipping and handed the book to Zia again.
"What is that?" Zia asked looking at a drawing of a star beaming down on humans as they bow.
"You have much to learn, Zia. You have been sheltered from the real world your entire life. I know it must be by design. Either Damien knows what you are, or he has some other reason for keeping you like this." Orion said.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Orion stood up to answer it. When he opened the door, Ansel stood on the other side of it.
"Damien wants to talk to you both. He doesn't want to fight." Ansel said, nervously.
Orion and Zia looked at each other. Orion placed his hand on Zia's shoulder.
"It will be alright, Zia. I won't let anything happen to you." He said.