I've been sitting in my cell unable to sleep for hours. I'm not sure what time it is, but it's been a while since I was escorted back after the meeting with William Hazel. I'm slightly jealous that Lauriel can sleep so easily. Her snores echo in the small room we're in. Part of me wishes I was still drained of aura just so I can as well.
To pass the time I've been replaying everything that I can remember over and over in my head. Was I the reason this mission failed or was it destined to from the start? If I weren't there, Helen wouldn't be loose. David and Brianna wouldn't have stopped to fight me either. Maybe they could've dealt with Ethan and Katherine earlier.
"They were going to fail no matter what," Helen says. "They barely kept up with those two. The esteemed 'Knight Squad' doesn't seem like much of a challenge to me."
"What do you know?"
"A lot, actually."
"Then it's time to relay it. I want to know your story. No nonsense about me not being ready, look at where we are. There couldn't be a better moment." She doesn't respond so I continue: "I think I already saw some of it in a dream, there was a porch, a man handing me lemonade. Then what looked to be my grandfather and Valentine soldiers riding in on horses….it ended with my grandfather's lifeless body beneath my feet. Don't tell me…"
"I did," she says, "And I'd do it again if I had the opportunity, only this time more bloody. And if you truly insist…I was born June 5th, 1819, in Millstone, a country your family has now renamed District 3. We housed a beautiful community before your family invaded and killed nearly everyone…just to find me."
1819? That'd put her in her seventies..."Why was my grandfather looking for you?"
"Because of the light seal I possessed, I caused the fast expansion of Athys. He ran through entire nations just to get to me."
"Then you're The-"
"No, I'm Helen…I was born to a traditional witch and a swordsman. As a little girl, I was taught magic by my mother, and sword fighting by my father. My parents were strict that way. They also didn't hide the fact that I had a light seal, even as a child, I became popular all around Millstone. I had the ability to duplicate myself, creating a complete copy of myself made of white light. People were fascinated that a child was born outside of your family with the seal. Eventually, my mother, Mary, decided to take me to The Coven. Too many eyes were on us and she wanted to keep me safe."
"The Coven? What is that?" I ask.
"Long before elementals came along, humans learned to hone natural magic. The same as today, those who learned how to hone that magic were labeled as witches and warlocks. They were ostracized at first, then forcefully removed from their homes and communities. Eventually, it was decided that they were too dangerous to be left alone, does this sound familiar? They were forced to find a new home, one where they would be completely safe and undetected. That place is located in Millstone. It's a portal of some sort in the woods, not too far from where you all were fighting the multi-seals."
"A portal…? Like an invisible door?"
"Exactly, The Coven inevitably grew and they started electing an Elder Witch, and Warlock. Two leaders united in marriage who oversee the safety and well-being of all. The elders were typically the oldest in the coven…overtime the elder was chosen by who was the strongest. I wanted nothing more than to be the Elder when I was a child. I studied all of the magic I could, I became a pupil of the elder at that time. Over time, The Coven began to fill with multi-seals, who much like the witches and warlocks of the past, needed a safe home.
"Years had gone by and things began to die down. I was twenty-four when my life ended...my mother suddenly passed and my father decided to move us back to Millstone, thinking it was safe for us to return to our home. We found out fast that it wasn't actually. Somehow your grandfather got news of me and began his search. By conquering land, Athys grew in size and over time so did the Valentine power. The dream you had…it's the day he found me. I can show you better than I can tell you."
"Show me how?"
"If my memories are creeping into your dream, then it seems my spell has linked us deeper than I initially realized."
"So, this is a spell? I assume you're going to explain it as well?"
"That's another story, let's stay focused here, darling. Close your eyes."
I do as she says and an image starts to form in my mind. The same image as the dream, I'm sitting on the porch in Helen's body and seeing the world through her eyes. I'm handed a glass of lemonade once again. Only this time the man's face isn't blurred.
"It's such a beautiful day," he says walking further out onto the porch, his eyes looking to the blue sky above us. "It's a nice day for a walk. What do you think, darling?"
"This is my father, Henry. Can you believe he was in his sixties here?" Helen's voice echoes as if it comes from the sky. Her father doesn't react. He's just smiling at me, awaiting a response. She's right, he looks twenty years younger than sixty. He doesn't have many wrinkles. His skin is smooth, but there are bags under his eyes He also has a beautiful short, gray afro.
Suddenly a man comes running out of nowhere. He runs through the street in complete panic before stopping at the fence of the house. "The Valentine are here…." he huffs. "They're looking for Helen…"
Henry looks to me, or better yet, Helen, and gestures for her to get inside.
"No, father! We need to run!" She pleads.
"I won't be forced to run from the house my mother built for this family, no more. Go!" He shouts.
"I didn't understand his decision back then but I do now. He would've rather died than run anymore. My father hated our time at the coven. He thought his family belonged in Millstone. Our true community, as he put it. His choice to move us back changed my life forever."
Helen swiftly runs inside and shuts the door behind her. She runs over to the window and peaks through the curtains. Only a second later, three men ride in on the backs of horses. The man who came to warn us inconspicuously walks down the street. He gives me…Helen, a cautionary glance through the window. Her attention shifts to the three men once more. Two Valentine soldiers wearing the old-timey uniform. The man in the middle wears a helmet, also he's wearing Father's royal armor. It's a special-made armor suit with the pink Valentine crest branded on the back of the chest plate.
"This was 1858 when he found me, your grandfather."
In a very eerie experience, I see him jump down from his horse and take off his helmet. His long brown dreads fall down his back and I can finally verify that it's him. I've only ever seen him as an old man. In all of his portraits, those dreads are longer and gray. Next to Richard Valentine, my grandfather was the most prominent Valentine king. For all the wrong reasons.
He slowly walks to the middle of the street as the neighborhood watches with cautious eyes. There are people outside of their homes, in their windows, on the street. It doesn't matter where, they're all frozen in fear. The tension is visible in the air.
"A young woman wielding a light seal resides here, no?" He yells loudly and doesn't get a response from anyone.
"I will give you, as a community, ten seconds to tell me where she is before my men start killing you." He menacingly smiles. He begins his countdown, he gets to seven before Henry interrupts him.
"There's no need for any of that!" He shouts down from the porch.
"And you are…?" Charles turns to him with a smile.
"The father of the woman you're looking for. Charles walks to the fence and opens the gate. "May I?" He asks before proceeding. Henry gives him a nod.
"What is he doing?!" I ask, but Helen doesn't answer.
"Is she inside?" Charles asks, unsheathing a strange black sword. One that I immediately recognize…The Blade of Ares. Said to be the weapon of choice by the God of War. It's an ancient, mysterious sword that possesses magical abilities. It's said to drain the lifeforce out of anything it cuts, literally aging its opponents with each slice. It transfers that energy back to its wielder, giving them an enormous boost in energy levels during combat. My grandfather fed off of that energy.
The ability my grandfather was handed was rather strange. He absorbed light through the sun like a plant. He didn't eat, he didn't sleep, never used the bathroom, never got sick. Everything was provided for him by the natural energy of the sun. It's not a combat ability in any sense on its own. But pair both abilities of the blade and his seal, and you've got a tough opponent. The blade was lost during the war following his death.
"As I said, there's no need for that. I'm hoping to work out an agreement," Henry says. "You cannot see her until you agree to my terms. Charles laughs in his face. "And what's stopping me?" He pushes Henry aside, he goes for the door handle but is burned upon touching it.
"What is it that you want with her?" Henry asks.
"The seal, she's a special girl, being born with it despite not having our blood. She belongs with us, consider me her seal family." Charles smiles.
"If I hand her over, I want certain assurances," Henry says.
"This is some father you have, how could he just do this to you?" I ask.
"You don't understand, there would be more bloodshed if he didn't. Charles would not have stopped killing if he didn't have me. The guilt of all those innocent people killed just to keep me safe was weighing heavy on us. Especially my father."
"Assurances like…?" Charles asks.
"I come with you, wherever you're taking her. She does nothing that I don't approve of myself. I already assume you want her for some war effort, to turn her into a soldier."
"What a loving father you are," Charles smiles. "Unfortunately, I don't care for your assurances. And luckily, I have this…." He steps forward and points the blade to the door.
"What is this, a basic protection spell?" He pushes the blade through the door and the orange light of the protection spell is absorbed through the blade. Henry looks at what's happening with a terrified expression. He grabs Charles' arm and tries to pull the sword out of the door.
Helen gets up and runs over to the door. She struggles as she tries to figure out what to do.
"Run! Just go!" Henry yells from the other side. She doesn't move, she watches as Charles grabs Henry by the neck, and puts the blade through his chest.
I feel her fear, the coldness that comes over her at this moment. The cold is soon replaced with fire, it burns, and then sears. Then she realizes the burning is directed at Charles. She rips the door open and creates a light double of herself. The double suddenly disintegrates and forms a sword in her hand.
"What a nice trick!" Charles laughs.
"Helen…" Henry coughs up blood, it disgusts Charles and he pushes Henry off of the blade. His body thumps the concrete pavement. Helen storms toward Charles and takes a swing with her blade. Charles blocks the blow with The Blade of Ares. It absorbs Helen's sword completely and she's forced to jump back. All the while Charles has a smug smile on his face.
"I'll give you a moment to mourn," he says. "After two minutes, my men will come to collect you." He turns his back to walk away.
She's feeling too many emotions to speak, it's like she's stuck. The only thing to snap her out of it is the urge to check on Henry. She runs to his side and struggles to figure out what to do. His skin wrinkles and his hair is withering away.
She suddenly runs into the house and grabs the first knife she can find. She runs back to Henry's side and slashes her right palm. Henry tries to put his hand up to stop her but she proceeds anyway, clapping her hands together and holding them at her chest. "Divine Invocation: Essence of Life!" Helen struggles to say, tears flowing down her face like a river.
A green aura fills her hands and she places them on his chest. After a few seconds, Helen begins to cry harder.
"Why? Why isn't it working?!" She yelps.
"At the time, I didn't know that anything the blade pierces soils. The spell I performed was an invocation of the highest spirit I could reach. A God, an angel, anything. It's forbidden magic. The spell Essence of Life was supposed to transfer my life force into him, a life for a life. But the cells in his body, his aura network, it all died once that blade went through his chest. The spell instead was repelled back into me...along with the dimming life force in my father…"
The green aura suddenly begins moving from Helen's hands, climbing her forearm, reaching her chest, and then her entire body. The green aura suddenly explodes and sends Helen flying. Every goes black and my vision clears, shifting back to the dark cell of the Hazel castle.
"I'm so sorry," is all I can muster to say. I hate this family. "What happened after that?"
"I became immortal and went on to become the thing my father feared for me, a tool for your family."
Immortal…? She still hasn't explained how she's in my head either. And why have I not heard about this? I know all of our family history but this is new.
"You know I can hear you, darling? The time isn't right yet. You're also taking this surprisingly well."
The door swings open and in walks Florence with a Hazel soldier. "Get up," She says. "My Father wants to speak with you." She has the soldier open my cell door, only this time he doesn't come in to grab me.
"You just gonna stand there? Come on." Florence barks.
"When is it gonna be my turn?" Lauriel asks rubbing her eyes.
"When you're important enough," Florence says walking out of the door. The soldier gestures for me to walk ahead of him. I follow Florence through a different path than the one she took me on last time. As we walk I notice three doors that look similar to the one Lauriel and I are being kept in.
"Do you even know how to use the seal?" Florence suddenly asks.
"No, I don't." There's been so much going on that It hadn't even crossed my mind. Just when I'm trying to improve my light seal, here comes a fire seal that's alien to me.
"Is that what your father wants me for?" She smirks and turns away. It's just hitting me, I'd also be considered a witch now. What does that mean for my dream? Would people still accept me the same way...? No use thinking about all of that right now.
We continue through the castle halls for a few minutes before arriving in a dining room. There's a large table in the middle of the floor and seated there is William.
"Ah, Alyssa Valentine. Please take a seat," he smiles.
Hesitant, I walk over to the table and slowly take a seat. He looks at me for a moment before laughing to himself.
"I apologize for keeping you in that dungeon. It's standard policy, you see? I'm sure you can understand, our rivalry goes back centuries."
I check the walls to see if they're any dampeners on the wall. "Of course there are," William laughs. "I'm not that stupid."
Florence takes a seat at the table. "It was actually my daughter's idea to speak with you. The future Queen of Espin, and potentially the future Queen of Athys…how's that going by the way? It must be sad to play third to your two siblings. Florence is lucky she doesn't have that problem." He laughs. "I am unable to have any more children, you see. She has a younger brother….but he's no king. I can already see it." Florence looks uncomfortable and pissed off.
"I suppose Harris views you the same? But…back on track," William continues. "That fire seal on your hand has made you an important commodity. A very rare acquisition, if you will."
"How's that?" I ask, uninterested.
"You see, I like to collect….witches and warlocks. It's like adding valuable pieces to my already valuable collection of soldiers called the Hazel Infantry. But…a fire and light seal has never been seen before. Also, who's expecting the bearer to be a Valentine princess. How did you suddenly become a witch?" He asks with a curious face.
"I can't explain how it happened, I don't remember," I mutter.
"Alright," he shrugs. "Well, I'm just going to put it on the table. Interestingly enough, I have the future queen in my collection but you're what interests me more. That newly formed seal on your hand is more intriguing. So, how about you join me? What's left for you in Athys? The throne? Family? I can tell you're the black sheep of your family. It's in the way they look at you. You see it don't you? Their hatred for you."
He's just trying to get in my head. Has been this entire time.
"I think you know what my answer is."
He sucks his teeth, "well, we'll see if you change your mind in a couple of hours."