16 years into the future...

“Harder! Concentrate on the energy of the mana channeling inside you! Feel the flame of your power in your core and try to spread it all over your body!” Lucius screamed at Ellara as he kept hitting the magical whip made of his flames onto the floor in anger. The whip cracked through the air with a sharp hiss. The impact reverberated through the room, leaving a lingering echo that seemed to hang in the air like a sinister whisper.

Ellara stood in the barren and cold underground chamber, filled with dust and spider webs, drenched in sweat and covered with blood and burn marks. Both her ankles were chained to the floor.

Panting from exhaustion and the pain from her burns, she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate as her father told her.

“Breath” she told herself. “Breath... Feel the energy inside of you, use the anger and pain to fuel it...Make it burn! I want to feel it burn inside of me. I meed the anger and hate to take over me and make it all go away... Just let it all out... Let the shadows take over.” She opened her eyes and looked at the duke. A heated energy started to intensify. The beads of sweat on her skin started to evaporate into the air. The oppressive heat seemed to seep from her pores, enveloping her in a shimmering haze. The surrounding air began to ripple and distort even more, mirage-like, as the sweat evaporated into the wisps of scalding steam that danced and swirled around her, creating a suffocating aura of blistering heat.

Suddenly, black shadows started to engulf her body, mixing with the steam of heat around her, encroaching upon her eyes slowly. A chilling transformation took hold. Like tendrils of inky blackness, the shadows slithered into her gaze, consuming every trace of color until her eyes became abyssal pools of pure darkness. No glimmer of light left behind. With a steady hand, Ellara extended her arm, fingers curling into a commanding gesture. Fire and shadows danced in macabre harmony, engulfing her outstretched palm as she directed the unleashed power toward Lucius.

“Kill,” Ellara commanded the shadows. As they gushed towards Lucius. He swung his hand to create a fire barrier and deflect the attack.

“HAHAHA! Yeah, this is it! This is what I’m talking about!” He laughed hysterically as he run his finger through his long black hair.

Ellara stood still with the shadows still engulfing her. She raised her hand to attack Lucius again.

“Now calm the fuck down you little demon” He said with an evil smirk on his face as he interrupted her upcoming attack. He raised his hand, his fingers outstretched, tracing an elegant figure-eight in the air with a fluid motion. Glaring at Ellara with amusement in his eyes as he summoned the energies that bound the shackles around her two ankles. With a subtle twist of his wrist, commanding the metal restraints to respond. A powerful electricity started to surge through her body. She fell down on her knees, screaming from the intense pain. Unable to move, she lifted her head to look at the ceiling as she kept screaming.

“Yes,” a whisper echoed in her right ear. “Suffer,” it whispered again.

Ellara started to scream even louder as the electricity intensified.

Lucius waved with his hand to command the power surging through the shackles to stop.

“This is what happens when you even think to harm your own father, you ungrateful piece of shit! You should only do what I command you to do and stay put. Don’t you ever think that you can surpass me just because you possess that kind of power? I’m the one in control here and I’ll always be! DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!” Lucius shouted, his voice filled with anger and hostility, echoing through the empty cellar with an unsettling intensity.

“Ugh... I-I’m so sorry, Fa-father,” Ellara managed to utter between gritted teeth, each word a struggle against the searing pain coursing through her body.

“Fine, whatever, I’m so sick of your rebelling. I don’t understand why won’t you just listen to me? Hum? I’m your father Ellara” He said as he walked towards her. He kneeled down and started to stroke her hair and running his fingers through it.

“I love you Ellara, you’re my beloved child, my pride... I just want you to be better, Elly, you have to understand that you’re different from everyone around you! You have potential, so much potential Elly, you could be the most powerful person on this earth and you can rule this land. You could even be a goddess! Just listen to your daddy, hum? Okay? Just listen to me and everything will be fine. ” He said with a soothing voice as he grabbed a lock of her hair and sniffed it.

“Elly, everything will be okay. I’m doing this for your own good. Daddy will never harm you” He pulled her head closer to his chest and hugged her softly.

“I know, father...” Ellara whispered with a weak voice. “I know you do…”

“Good girl” Lucius patted her head and got up.

“Mikael!” He yelled. “Take care of Ellara, treat her wounds and give her new clothes before she gets out of here” He snapped his fingers to release the shackles around Ellara’s ankles.

“Yes, my lord,” Replied Mikael as he appeared, holding a white towel in his hands.

“All right, I’m going to have a shower and go out, I have some business to tend to. So finish up with Ellara and come to my room, I need your assistance.”

“Yes my Lord, I’ll finish with my lady and come right back to you”

Lucius headed to the stairs and left the empty, cold cellar. Mikael stood looking at Ellara who was sitting on the floor, covered in bruises, burns and sweat. The room was cold and humid. The smell of smoke and burned flesh was all over the place.

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Ellara’s face was etched with agony as she sat upon the ground, her body wracked with pain from the wounds inflicted upon her. Yet, beneath the physical torment, there was a haunting emptiness in her eyes, a vacant stare that seemed to pierce through the veil of her suffering. It was a soulless gaze, devoid of emotion, as if she were slowly losing herself to the depths of despair.

Mikael kneeled down and put his hand on her right shoulder.

“My lady, are you alright?” He said while he wiped her face, covered with dirt and blood, with the towel.

“I’m fine Mikael, don’t worry, I just need some ointment for my burns,”

“Right away, my lady. I’ll bring the and ointment and a new dress for you real quick”

Mikael said as he got up and headed to the stairs in a hurry.

Ellara sat down on the floor, exhausted. She started to breathe heavily as she closed her eyes and lifted her head up. Her long black hair cascaded down her back.

A loud ringing started in her ears.

“Ah, I feel like killing someone,” Ellara whispered in exhaustion.

“I just want to rip someone apart, remove their intestines and just revel in the scent of blood” she gritted her teeth so hard and let out a loud scream tinged with both anger and frustration, the sound sharp and piercing, yet laden with so much emotions.

Ellara started pounding the floor with her right fist over and over, releasing her anger until her hand couldn’t bear it any longer. Her fist grew rigid, blood coating the floor as she struggled to contain her emotions.

“My lady! Please stop hurting yourself!” Screamed Mikael as he hurried to stop Ellara.

“My lady, you should stop doing this! You should stop resorting to harming yourself whenever you’re overwhelmed with emotions,” said Mikael as he wiped the blood off Ellara’s hand before applying the ointment on it.

“I can’t Mikael, I feel this relentless urge that’s eating me from the inside! I can’t help it, it’s like a screw jammed into my mind and I can’t get it out!”

Mikael looked at her silently as he continued to tend to her wounds, unable to answer her or even console her.

“My lady, here’s a clean new dress. Please change into it before getting out of here. I’m going to give you your space and go to tend to the duke since he needs me. Is there anything else I can help you with before I leave my lady?”

“No thank you Mikael, it’s fine, you can go,” she replied.

“Alright my lady, excuse me then.”

He offered a solemn bow to Ellara before making his way to the stairs, intending to exit the cellar. Pausing for a moment, he cast one last glance at Ellara, his heart heavy with unspoken words. Despite his desire to offer comfort, the weight of the situation left him speechless. With a clenched fist, he turned away, leaving Ellara behind as she sat in pain on the ground.

After calming herself down for a while, she finally stood up and changed into the new dress that Mikael gave her and threw the old one in a corner. She stood for a second in the middle of the cold cellar; clenching her fists, trying to control her breathing and her emotions.

“You need to kill something to calm yourself down. Breathing won’t do you any good,” something whispered in her right ear.

Ellara eye’s widened in astonishment the second that she heard the whisper, causing her to jerk in surprise.

Despite the absence of anyone beside her in the cellar, the sensation sent shivers down her spine, leaving her perplexed and unnerved.

She started to look around her, checking again if there’s anyone beside her in the cellar, but the quietness was all over the place.

No one was there beside her.

“Am I finally losing my mind?” She said to herself in disbelief.

She shook her head and breathed deeply again, and headed to the stairs to get out of the cellar.

Stepping out of the dark humid cellar, Ellara was met with the blinding brightness of the sun. She quickly raised her left arm to shield her eyes from its harsh rays.

It was spring. The weather was warm and flowers were everywhere. You can smell the intoxicating fresh smell of lilies all over the place. Which made Ellara feel nauseous. She hated flowers, but her stepmother loved them, especially lilies.

The estate’s back garden contained a variety of lilies that surrounded the main fountain.

Ellara covered her nose in disgust as she hurried to the little wooden door that leads to the forest that surrounded the Ashbourne’s estate.

“I have to hunt something right away or I’m going to lose my mind!” said Ellara as she started to run through the forest.

“I think I can find a deer on the west side of the forest! I’ll just use thermospatial magic to detect if there’s any in there”

She stopped, closed her eyes, “Ignis sensum” she uttered, lifting her right hand toward the sky before tracing a circular motion in the air, invoking the magic to detect any kind of body heat or motion nearby.

“Okay! There’s indeed three deer in the west! Excellent!” she said with a smirk on her face, her excitement evident as she dashed towards the western edge of the forest.

She dashed through the forest, weaving between trees and ducking under low branches. The bushes rustled as she passed, her footsteps quick and light on the forest floor.

She halted as soon as she spotted her target, her eyes locking onto it with determination.

The male deer stood tall and proud, its antlers branching out like a crown atop its head. Its fur was a rich chestnut color, dappled with shades of gold in the sunlight filtering through the trees. With muscles rippling beneath its sleek coat, it exuded an aura of strength and grace.

“An excellent prey, this is exactly what I need” Ellara’s voice carried a chilling edge. Her words betrayed a deep-seated craving for the hunt, her desire for blood and the thrill of the chase simmering just beneath the surface.

Her eyes gleamed with dark intensity as she extended her hand towards the deer, her voice resonating with eerie authority. She murmured, her words laced with a chilling command. “KILL”. The shadows responded to her summons, swirling around the unsuspecting deer with a sinister embrace, obeying her every command with ruthless efficiency.

As the black shadow started to close in on the deer, Ellara’s focus faltered as a rustling sound emerged from the nearby bushes. She stopped casting the shadow magic, turning her attention towards the disturbance to see who or what was there.