The Keeper Sorceress

Scars to heart

I breathed in and out but air wouldn't enter my lungs. Starved for air, my heart raced at prodigious speeds, and my chest shallowly rose and fell in time.  

Three boys ripped a bloodsucker apart. While a wizard and a witch killed four of our. A girl no more than sixteen tried to fight a vampire solider but failed, loosing her life.

I want to run, run as far away from here as I can.

I saw blood coming out like a fountain, when a vampire ripped a man's head apart.

I screamed, but I heard nothing, maybe my throat has lost it's ability to make sound or maybe my scream got mixed with hundreds and thousands of other screams.

Two of our guards tried to attack two of their witches but an invisible force field threw them back. A woman ripped a bloodsucker apart but before she could process her victory two bloodsuckers attacked her from behind. A man tried to scare off three vampires who surrounded him with a bone fire wood, a girl no more than eight clinging to his right leg. Must be a human. Humans my father swore to protect, humans who took shelter in our kingdom thinking this would be the safest place.

But we should have known better, they should have known better. No place in this realm is safe from these ferocious creatures. These creatures are like an incurable disease.

At the end that human lost his fight...

Shouldn't I scream? Shouldn't I be trying to free myself from this psychotic vampire?  Instead of letting him make me dance with him against my will. Instead of feeling like a ghost, cold and numb and empty?

A hooded figure who has been standing near us for a long time now, extended his hands out and in one swift moment I saw five of our guards and three of our civilians drop dead to the ground. And that, that was enough who make me scream. That was enough to make my knees weak and loose my balance.

"Hey,hey,hey...little pup. Easy there. It's not like he snapped your family's necks." Collin said holding my waist to secure me even closer to him. My head snapped to look at him as cold tears slide down my cheeks uncontrollably.

"Did he" he said smiling down at me. 

An evil psychotic creature.

"Let me go" clawed his hands on my waist. "No I am not done yet" closing his eyes he started moving fluidly again.

"Are you going to do that for whole night?" person in hood said to my tormentor, which obviously made this evil creature laugh "why? are you jealous"

"Jealous of you?" person in hood mocked Collin "Victor you would be the last person on this earth to make me jealous. I am asking this because they need you in palace" his words made my breath hitch my family. In panic I tried to call upon my powers, something I have been trying to do since last fifteen minutes but it looks like powers have abandoned me just like my courage 

"Oh crap little pup, I have to go." Collin or Victor or whosoever this bloodsucker is said caressing my cheeks making me cringe "but you don't worry I will be back soon. Till then stay here with him" with that he pushed me towards the boy in hood who held my shoulders firmly to steady me. In blink of eyes Victor was gone, leaving me under the watch of another monster. 

"Now you will stand here like the good little princess" I tried to jerk his hands off my shoulder but his grip was firm too. After couple of failed attempts, I decided to stand still and close my eyes taking long breaths and trying to block away all the screams and snapping sounds. 

"Whenever you are scared just close your eyes, take deep breaths and block away all the thoughts" father tapped my head "running in there. Once there's silence in there, then think ain't you the one who holds power" he took both my palms in his hands and gently squeezed them "in her hands. Tell yourself that you are stronger than those banshees, stronger than demons under your bed and your head. Because you" he put his finger where my heart is supposed to be "are much stronger than you believe. Inhale courage and exhale fear Arielle...."

"Inhale courage and exhale fear, inhale courage and exhale fear, inhale courage and exhale fear" I chanted what my father once told me like a mantra. I chanted until every scream, every cry, every cracking sound around me faded. Until I heard nothing but my voice in my head, until I felt nothing except the tingling in my legs, my hands....by whole body. I opened my eyes just in time to see neck of three soldiers being snapped in one swift motion of my captor's hand. This Wizard is way too powerful for someone like me.

"Always remember in a battle your power is not your most important asset, your brain is. If you strategize your moves cleverly you can beat even an opponent twice more powerful than you" Our father taught us once.

Witches and wizards are powerless without their spells. So shutting his damn mouth would leave him powerless, the only problem here is he has killed more than ten of my people before my eyes but not even once I heard him using spells. Either he's chanting them in volume lower for me to hear even when he's standing right behind me or I am too consumed with terror and my want to control fear and gather all the courage left in me to hear his spells. 

In any case I have to get away from him, I have to reach palace my family needs me and I can not just stand here and watch this monster kill soldiers who dare come for my aid.

Not wasting another moment in thinking anything further. I hit him in stomach with my left elbow, which took him by surprise. Pressing his stomach with both his hands he yelped in pain, bending a little. Taking advantage of this I punched him in the face as hard as I could, which made him groan and he took few steps back which made his hood fall off his face.

"You stupid girlll" he said holding his nose in one hand while other hand pressed against stomach.

"Stilte" I screamed extending my hand in his direction, while my other hand gathered enough energy to make an energy orb. He must have noticed mini yellow energy orb in my left hand because his eyes widened and he looked at me in utter surprise.

"Get stuffed you monster" 

I hit him with the first energy orb, powerful enough to throw him at some distance. Not giving him much I time I hit him with another orb preparing for the third one, although this time he almost dodged. Keyword 'almost'

"Monsters like you shout be served to hellhounds" I said making a large orb between my palms "and I will make sure they get your corpse"

I threw another orb towards him, but instead of hitting him my yellow orb hit a bright  purple shield getting dissolved it in, in matter of seconds. Which made me gape and look at the boy. This time though I noticed something that I missed earlier, something that made me take few steps back and gulp. Ink black marking covering his forehead, his eyes purple "A wolf princess, who uses witches' spells but is actually a sorceress" he said getting up and taking deliberately small steps in my direction. "I am actually very confused. Care to clear my confusion her loyal highness, Princess of Wokozar" he mocked now closer.

My eyes travelled to his palms, no marking there which means he is still learning, he is not that powerful yet. Which also means I could defeat him if I try harder. I prepared for another attack but just then I felt something flowing through my head. Like warm soothing wind in starting of winters, that touches your face and blows through your hair. And I instantly feel safe amid the chaos, my brain tells me to relax and trust Cade, a name I never even heard of.

"Or maybe we should talk when we are out of this mess. When we reach night kingdom" Cade said brushing my hairs off my right shoulder "mmm marks hidden well behind the thick curtain. Clever" he traced the markings on my neck.

I should step back, no man has the right to touch me like that unless I want him to, but strangely enough I stay rooted to my spot letting Cade see my markings and trace them "Cade..." 

Hearing his name he looked at me with a strange content smile "Why don't you sleep for now, Arielle" 

How strange I was not feeling sleepy until few minutes ago, but now that he says to sleep I feel drowsy so much that I grab his left shoulder to maintain balance "You are right I need some sleep" yawning I said, before putting my chest on his shoulder and letting the sleep claim me.