Mate of Fate

The sky was still dark when I woke up to the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. Heavy drops of rain began to fall, each one a reminder of the stormy atmosphere both outside and inside the house. Lightning flickered, illuminating the room in brief flashes as I climbed out of bed and prepared for another day. Right. Here we go again. The same routine every morning with those two little rascals, Elias and Elle. The twins were adorable, but they sure had a knack for straining each other's nerves, and mine. Despite their sweetness, they harbored a deep resentment towards their mother, blaming her for the untimely death of their father, the Village Chief. Honestly, I did too. I would never admit it, but he was my father as well, and his sudden death was devastating for me. He and the twins' mother, my stepmother, had married quickly after my own mother died while giving birth to me. She raised me alongside my father, treating me as her own when he watched, and like dirt under her polished stilettos when he looked away. Her only use for me was as a servant in whatever way she saw fit, a role she still demanded I fulfill. My father never blamed me for my mother's death or made me feel any less loved, but she did. Melinda, the dragon, the soul-eater, my stepmother. She spent every waking minute blaming me for killing my own mother. Flashback: Melinda's Wrath "What a devious little devil you are, Alice, killing your mother only to have your father all to yourself! Perhaps you'll kill me next. Maybe I should put an electric collar with a little bell around your neck to keep you in your rightful place, far beneath the status of a dung beetle," Melinda sneered. The idea of ending her reign of terror was tempting, but I could never do that to the twins. Despite their mother's cruelty, she was still their mother. Had I been given the chance, I would do anything to keep both my mother and father. No matter the suffering I endured, I could never take another mother away from her children. At least I had Elias and Elle. Those two were worth every ounce of torture I had to endure in this household. Whether it was Melinda's constant nagging or the way she ordered me around as a maid and nanny, they were my rays of sunshine. Everyone in the village knew how horribly Melinda treated me, the firstborn of the Village Chief, but they dared not oppose her. She had inherited the title of Village Chief when my father died because I was underage and unable to claim it. I turned twenty last month, but there wasn't much I could do unless Melinda voluntarily passed it on to me. And that would only happen on a cold day in hell. But it didn't matter. As long as I could get Elias and Elle ready for school before the bus arrived, the day would start wonderfully. Morning Mayhem "STOP IT! ELIAAAAAS!" Elle's voice rang through the house. "Boohoo, little Princess Elle can't have her way! The best lunchbox is MINE!" Elias taunted. Elle, sobbing, called out, "Aliiiiiiiiice! Elias won't stop teasing me..." Elias burst out laughing. "Oh save your crocodile tears, Elle. You know Alice knows you too well to fall for that." I stood in front of Elias, towering over him with my hands on my hips, putting on my most strict and stern attitude. Both twins knew it was my silent sign for them to behave because their mother was close by and listening in. "Please don't fight over something as silly as your lunch. I'll make sure you both get sandwiches with everything in them, as long as you settle down and finish your breakfast immediately! Tick tock, angels, the bus will be here soon, so we have no time for dillydallying." I gave them both a loving smile and a wink, letting them know it was all for show, so their mother wouldn't come after them later for bad manners. "YES MA'AM!" Elias saluted. "Yes, Miss Alice," Elle chimed in. I got both children to finish their breakfast, get ready, and head out the door just in time for the bus. I waved my little angel's goodbye, wishing them a day full of adventure, before turning back, to the yellow brick, five-floor, early Victorian mansion that had been in our family for generations. It was time to start my daily routines of cleaning, washing clothes, tidying the twins' rooms, and catering to the "fury of hell's" every need and request. The Daily Grind "Oh AAAALIIIICE!" Melinda's voice sliced through the air. "I expect you got my babies on the school bus now?" "Yes, Ma'am," I replied, keeping my tone neutral. "Then there's no excuse for your laziness. Get your ugly, fat self into the kitchen and clean up the mess you made! You have five minutes, or you'll be looking forward to ten strokes of the whip before lunch!" "Yes, Ma'am," I said, suppressing the urge to retort. As I moved to the kitchen, I couldn't help but feel a pang of longing for something more—something beyond the oppressive walls of this mansion. Little did I know, my life was about to change in unimaginable ways. The world I knew would soon vanish into a void of nothingness. I scrubbed and cleaned with frantic urgency, ensuring I met the five-minute limit to avoid a pre-lunch whipping. My back bore the scars of years of Melinda's abuse; I had no desire to add to their number. Finishing in the kitchen, I hurried upstairs to make the twins' beds and tidy their room. Suddenly, a light as bright as a nuclear explosion pierced through the clouds, sending shockwaves that shattered every window in the house. I instinctively dropped to the wooden floor, my heart pounding as my wide blue eyes filled with terror. What on earth was that? The Shockwave I waited a few seconds, then cautiously got back on my feet. My voice trembled as I called out to Melinda, terrified to draw attention to myself without knowing what had just occurred. Silence. Hugging the walls, I crept through the house, my pulse thumping loudly in my ears, adrenaline surging. I looked down the stairs, no sign of Melinda. I called her name repeatedly, searching every room from top to bottom, but she had vanished as if into thin air. Panic gripped me. What just happened? Where was Melinda? Questions swirled in my mind, but I had no time to ponder them. The Search My thoughts turned to the twins, their school. I had to find them, no matter what. If anything happened to them, it would destroy me. I tried to convince myself it was nothing, perhaps a nightmare from which I had just awoken. But if that were true, Melinda would have answered by now. I ran outside, frantically searching for any sign of life. "Melinda! Anyone! HELOOOOO!" My voice echoed, but there was no response. The eerie silence spurred me into a desperate sprint towards the school. My breath came in ragged, shallow gasps as I ran faster than I ever had before. I arrived at the school, only to find it dark and desolate. It looked like a ghost town. Frantically, I searched inside and out, screaming and crying out in desperate hope for any kind of response. Where was everybody? What had happened? Am I the only one left on earth? My head spun with unanswered questions, and my stomach twisted in knots. Overwhelmed by the terror and confusion, my eyes fluttered shut, and I collapsed onto the grass with a thump.