Dead leaves crunched after every hurried footstep she took, and puffs of fog panted from pale lips as the night sent chills throughout the air.
Run. That's all she knew she had to do and keep on until she found safety, but she could never be too cautious. Her first few attempts at hiding were a failure and had her fighting for her life.
Thundering stomps and ordering voices echoed behind her and seemed to get closer the faster she ran. The soles of her naked feet bled as uprooted roots and sharp thorns cut into them, causing her to stumble about, but even that didn't stop her. Parts of her dress was torn, only being held in places by thin threads.
She couldn't comprehend why any of this was happening to her. Why couldn't they just leave her alone? Haven't they done enough? Breathing became harder as the shouting got closer and closer, and her feet started tripping even more. A thousand heartbeats drummed in her ears and she felt the dark forest thickening as if it was closing in on her. 'Must keep running. Must keep breathing. Must keep running!' She thought as she ran on. Her legs started to weaken, energy seeping out from every pore until she tripped over a rock and crashed to the ground. She rolled to a stop.
She groaned in pain when suddenly she heard a shout, then she dashed behind a tree beside her. She curled her small, bruised body tight against the tree bark and quietly started gasping. The place suddenly grew eerily still. Keeping her ears open, she studied the forest suspiciously. She didn't hear any shouting. No footsteps. Nothing besides the sleeping forest. Her eyes suddenly twitched as she felt a slight presence to her right. Her breath instantly stilled as she slowly looked over and... Slash
Belle sprung upright in her bed clutching her blanket tight against her chest. Sweat drenched her body as she desperately sucked in air with a tingling sensation spreading along her back. After gaining back her senses, Belle glanced around noting that she was in her dark room instead of back in that dark forest. Everyone was sleeping so soundly. With that calming knowledge, her tense shoulders relaxed. Her eyes closed as she let out a sigh in relief and placed a palm to her forehead.
'It's been a while since I've dreamt about that,' she thought as the remnants of the dream, no nightmare swirled in her head. She stared down at her blanket with a million thoughts going through her mind at once.
'I wonder what it means?'
----------------------------------------
Intro: Brick by boring brick, Paramore
18
Back to normal?
----------------------------------------
DC guild later into the day...
The door was flung open as some of the hyper kids ran up the hallway with the rest of the house tiredly trailing behind. The family had just finished spending gruesome hours cleaning up the District yard, but finally managed to please the court. They even had to rebuild the fountain.
Parker was the last to enter the house and she softly closed the door, gnawing nervously on her lip. She walked up to King and lightly tapped his shoulder. King stopped, then turned to her.
"Hey, um. Can I talk to you?" She asked, fidgeting where she stood.
King stared at her quizzically, "Girl stuff?"
"What? No. It's about Dollhouse." She said lowly.
"Let's talk." The master said then headed downstairs. Parker followed behind him until they were on the main floor. "So, what about him?"
"I-" Parker started but couldn't seem to get the words out. "I think there was someone else with him. When I was being held captive, he'd mentioned someone named Mister."
King nodded along to what the girl was saying as something jogged his memory. "Yeah, now that you say that, I do recall him saying that name before the whole brain bath. They were in on it?"
"I'm positive they were." Parker answered seriously staring at the guild master.
"What is this my ear's hearing?" Ricky said walking down to the two. Pretty Boy was walking down beside him. "Was that headless corpse in cahoots with someone?"
"'S what it look like," King answered back.
"He didn't say it necessarily, but it was implied." Parker said.
"And the culprit is?" Ricky asked, spinning his hand in a circular motion telling them to hurry up.
Parker shrugged her shoulders and said, "Somebody named Mister."
"Mister? Mister.. Mister..." Pretty Boy mumbled to himself as he listened to them. "That sound so familiar. Wait a minute." He suddenly jumped up and dashed up the stairs and returned just as quickly with the Eshire Crone in his hand. The symbols were glowing brightly.
"I knew I had heard that before." Pretty Boy stated as he approached them. "See here," he pointed to a ideogram on the egg as if the others could understand it. "Remember when we first got this. At first, I didn't get it, but now it's kind of starting to make a little more sense."
"Yeah? Sure wish you were though." King gritted out.
Pretty Boy rolled his eyes and said, "This sentence ends on the word mister so I thought it was apart of it, but what if he was signing the egg."
"Then that would mean... Wait! Hold up, I'm a lil' lost." King said with a light chuckle. He placed his hands on his hips then peered over at the boy. "If the egg is this Mister's doing, then Arius..."
"Another one?" Ricky questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Is more than likely the same person," Pretty Boy stated with a proud expression. "More an alias to get our attention. I'm great at what I do."
Ricky mumbled loudly with a grunt, "Well, he certainly got it."
"So all this started because of..." King started but was cut off by loud noises above them.
Thump. Slam.
"Hey!" King yelled up to the ceiling were the noise was coming from upstairs. "Quiet down up there."
"So, what was Dollhouse in all of this?" Ricky asked out loud, crossing his arms.
"The jewels," the men turned to Parker who had spoke up. "Dollhouse was collecting them for him."
"He told you that?" Pretty Boy asked surprised.
"Not really," Parker said. "I just read between the lines. He never told me the reason why he was taking the jewels, so I put together what he didn't say and figured it out."
"Those some deep fucking lines." Ricky huffed out. "What's he need jewelry for?"
"I... I don't know. Another thing," Parker started, looking at the men seriously. "Dollhouse said that Mister had told him about us."
"I'm starting to think none of this was just a coincidence. Everything that's happened did for a reason." Pretty Boy said serious, still confused as he looked down at the egg. "What it could be I have no idea. I'm lost on what this guys' motive is. We don't bother nobody."
"And how do he know about us?" Parker added in.
"He told me..." King mumbled out as he was finally coming back to reality.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
"What ya sayin'?" Ricky asked.
"He told me, Dollhouse I mean said, that I was playing right into his hands. His hands. Was he talking about Mister?" King stated with furrowed brows. "Who the hell pissed someone off?"
The group stared at each other.
Crash
"QUIET! Please!" King roared out, irritated with everything at this point.
"So we gotta stalker that no one knows, who has a motive no one knows other than war, and our only lead to him is splattered all over the district yard." King listed off with a tight face. "Am I missing anything?"
"Ay ya ya." Ricky muttered, running his palm down his face.
"That sound about right." Pretty Boy said back grimly. He looked over at Parker who shared the same expression.
Ricky let out a breath. "And with no lead, our assailant is still running loose without a trace."
Thump. Bam. Slam.
"Hahaha," children laughter wafted through the ceiling and grated at the little patience King had left.
"Damn children," the master growled, then stormed up the stairs three steps at a time and cut the corner to the hallway. Following the sound of the noise, he marched to a door to the right.
The boys' room was wide, filled with ten twin size cots against the walls, five on each side. Right now, only seven were occupied. Though the kids shared a room, their bed area were decorated to each individuals' tastes, letting them be creative as they wanted to be.
What greeted King was a sibling showdown.
Maya had Rockie pinned down on the wood floor trapped in a headlock. K.O, Triton, and Danny stood on the beds cheering them on. Champion and Queen sat on his bed watching the fight with older sibling glee.
"..let...go..." Rockie barely gasped out with the girls' arm nearly crushing his windpipes.
"Tap out." Maya ordered grinning down at the boy in her arms.
Rockie tried to take in a breath, but it only made her squeeze harder, "...ne...ver..."
"Kick his ass,""Get her, Rockie," K.O and Triton yelled out.
"Hey!" King shouted, getting the loud bunch's attention. "We just spent 8 hours cleaning up the District. If ya'll got this much damn energy ya'll can take it outside. Better yet, go on. All of you."
"But it's hot out there." Maya whined, letting Rockie go to crash to the floor.
"That's what water's for. Out you go." King ordered to the room, ushering the kids out the door. Then he looked back at Champion and Queen who remained sitting. "All of you."
"What?" Champion jolted at the master.
"Out." King thumbed to the door and then Champion grumpily got up and left the room with Queen behind him.
The master stepped into the hall shaking his head and started to head back downstairs before something caught his attention. He walked to the door across from the boys' and stepped into another room.
The girls' room was made up the same way the boys' were, except it was more girly. Belle sat on her bed at the end of the room with her hands in her lap and her eyes looking down at them. The room was otherwise empty.
"You okay?" King asked as he stepped into the room and walked to her.
The girl remained silent, so King stepped to the bed and sat down with a sigh. "You know you can talk to ya pops," King tried with a gentle smile. "I might not be young anymore, but I'm a hell away from being old."
Belle swallowed, then slowly looked up and faced King, smiling slightly to assure him. "I'm fine. If I need to talk, you'll be the first person I come to."
"Alright?" King asked for good measure.
Belle nodded and the master took his cue.
"Alright." With that, King stood to his feet and headed to the door. When he reached it, he paused and looked back at Belle.
"We're having a session later. If you're still feeling down, you can skip today." King said.
Belle nodded slightly and the master returned it with a smile, then left the room.
----------------------------------------
Later in The Backyard...
"Class is now in session." King announced loudly as he paced to a spot on the dirt patch, facing the kids sitting on the bleachers.
Sharmaine and Ace sat off to the sides. Being older, they've attended many of the master's sessions and know a great deal. Now, they sometimes watched for entertainment. Sometimes there might be something new.
Ace sat with his arms crossed, grimacing like a big lug.
"You know, smiling helps you live longer." Sharmaine murmured to her twin.
"Now, don't tell me you believe in that?" Ace responded.
"Yes, I do quite believe in all aspects of life's views. You'd be surprised what turn out to be true." Sharmaine let off a smirk. Something soon caught her eye.
A glowing black orb zigzagged through the air.
'You see that?" Shar asked Ace who looked to where she was pointing.
"See what?" He asked, obviously not seeing anything.
"Nothing," Sharmaine settled with and continued watching. The orb floated around unnoticed by the others. Swirling around the children, it landed on Rockie. Soon more popped out and gathered until they were covering him entirely giving him a ghastly look. His head snapped towards her, looking so menacingly and scary with electrifying eyes and a large grin.
She gasped, and with a blink the ginger was himself again unfazed. She shook her spinning head as a feeling chilled her. Something was shifting.
"You guys already told me that the source is the main element to a magic's abilities." King continued with his lecture. "There are four classes of magic users. First are the Elementals, almost rare these days. These users are able to become their element or ability. To them, their magic is like a second layer of skin, being able to unleash their source much easier in an instant."
Rockie lifted his hand, "So, they are immortal?"
"No," King answered with a laugh. "No magic is immortal. They have weakness just like everybody else. Just for those users, conjuring up their magic can change them physically. Like becoming one with air or becoming water."
"Wouldn't that make you an elemental user with your metal?" K.O asked with a slightly raised hand. "And how are you able to control the arithe too?"
King only chuckled and continued, "We'll save that for another time. Second are the Sourcers. Unlike Elementals, Sourcers aren't able to become their ability and more than likely have to say a spell, but many are able to consume it and can manipulate their surroundings with it. Some are like Ivy with her sand or Rockie with electricity or K.O with wind."
"Then there are the Substitutes. These users manipulate their ability through a fend." King continued.
"What's a fend?" Triton asked.
King started, "It's-"
"A fend is vessel that a magic possess to use their source." Pretty Boy interrupted with a nonchalant shrug, admiring himself in his mirror. "Like Alche with his guns or wizards and witches."
"Or you with your mirror. Thank you, PB." King gritted out glaring over at the teen. "There is one more. The Unknowns are for magics who don't quite fit any of the other types. A lot of dark magic fall under this category. Understanding the different classes of magic is crucial. It will better help you to understand our own magics strengths and limitations. It also will provide insight on the enemies' abilities. And the rest will be for you to study for evaluation." King finished with a broad smile that turned into laughter when the kids started groaning and complaining.
Inside the girls bedroom...
"Alright, alright. Inside. Dinner's ready." King's voice rung out through the glass.
Belle stood at the window peaking through the curtains, while she listened to them outside. She wanted nothing more than to be with her family right now, but she just couldn't face them. She turned around letting her back align with the wall and slowly slid down until she was sitting. Balling her body up, she laid her head on her propped knees and cradled her arms around her head.
----------------------------------------
...
"Monster"
Voices seemed to be coming out from everywhere, but it was all dark.
"Demon"
"Huh?"
"Abomination"
"What? Me?"
"Your fault."
"No."
"Your fault"
"Your Fault"
"YOUR FAULT!"
"No!" Belle hurried and clutched her mouth when her body jolted up from her nightmare. As she took in deep breaths, her trembling eyes searched the room, seeing her sisters still sleeping peacefully under their blankets. It took her a minute to calm her on edge nerves and shaking body, but when she did she let out a broken breath. She finally calmed to feel the warmth from the blanket around her shoulders. She looked around once more then gathered herself up and quietly left the room.
----------------------------------------
Master's quarters...
Nara was maneuvering around their large bed, getting it ready for the night, while King was removing his day clothes for sleepwear.
"Have you noticed Belle lately?" King asked, pulling his pullover off. The light hit him just right, showing off his inked up skin.
"What's to notice?" Nara asked, looking to her husband.
"I don't know. She just been acting off."
Nara grabbed a pillow and started fluffing it. "Well, her birthday is in a few days."
King was about to put a shirt on when she said that and he stopped, "Her birthday? Wow, that's goo- oh. Oh" He said when it finally dawned on him, and he turned to Nara who was looking at him with a soft expression. "It's that time again."
"Yeah," Nara lowly said, then walked over to her husband. Placing a palm on his arm, she started rubbing it up and down. "You should talk to her. If anybody can understand her, it'll be you. So she can know that no matter how long, it'll never be easy to get used to."
"Too late." King gruffed, pulling the shirt over his head and spread it down his torso. "Already tried. She wouldn't talk."
"Well," Nara said, grabbing his face and stared into his eyes. "Try harder. In order for her to be open with you, you have to be open with her."
King thought it over with a nod.
Knock knock.
The two looked to the door, which slowly crept opened until a blue iris peeked through.
"Come in sweetie." Nara waved to the girl and Belle slowly entered somewhat into the room.
Belle chewed on her bottom lip, "I um... It might sound silly, but I couldn't sleep and um... Well if it's... I was wondering..," the girl continued to blubber, and Nara decided to help the teen out.
"Sweetie, calm down. Of course, you can sleep with us." Nara soothed and walked over to her. She placed her hands softly on the water mage shoulders and looked at her daughter. "You're never too old to sleep with mommy, okay?"
Belle nodded her head and Nara ushered her to the bed. Nara caught King giving her a look and just looked at him. They stared at one another for a second just communicating with their eyes, before heading to join Belle, who was already snuggled up in the middle.
Nara climbed in on Belle's right, clamping their palms together, then laid a kiss on her cheek. "Goodnight my love." Nara said, snuggling against the girls' side.
King turned off the lamp and laid on his stomach to her other side. He leaned over and kissed her forehead. "Love you, kisses."
"Love you, too." Belle whispered back, then let her eyes slide close to a dreamless slumber.
----------------------------------------