CHAPTER NINE

“Rose! Sit still!” Mercy playfully scolded me and I rolled my eyes at her through the mirror, I looked at the girl in the mirror. She was not the girl she was seven months ago, this girl looked beautiful and smart; her red hair was cut short that it reached just above her shoulders, her once pale almost grey skin now had a honey glow to it, and her eyes seemed more vibrate than the sun rays that shined after a rainy day. She looked innocent.

I sat still lost in my thoughts as Mercy added flowers and butterfly shaped pins in my hair. I had friends, I had a family. I finally had people to look forward to seeing the next day, I finally had someone to tell ‘I love you’. I was not alone anymore.

The first day I got here, everyone was skeptical and kept their distance except for Ms. Nama and Ignatius who created every opportunity to make me laugh and smile. Soon, everyone started talking to me and interacting with me, I felt like everything was finally looking up to me.

I planned on staying there forever and start a family of my own like the naïve dreamer I was, I did not think of revenge, death or the beast of a man. In those months, everything that happened before became a forgotten dream that later turned into a foggy memory.

I forgot my demons and the scars they inflicted on me, their faces slowly fading from my mind and their voices turned into whispers until there was nothing left but silence. Like my mind was erasing what treacherous things had happened and building new ones with everyone around me. I was happy. But I knew deep down everything good in my life had to burn someday.

“All done!” she exclaimed excitedly as she stared at my hair, I blinked a few times and gasped as my hands gently patted down the white flowers that went in accordance with the white dress “Thank you Mercy” I said and she beamed at me “Okay! Okay, now let’s go or we’ll definitely get an ear full from Ms. Nama” She said and grabbed my hand as we walked through the gloomy dim hall ways of the warehouse. In other words, my home.

I could hear the chattering and clicking of glasses even before the doors had opened to the dining hall, everyone in the entire area was here celebrating what they called ‘human’s freedom day’ the day when the humans took back their what had been stolen by the Maliens, the day that they decided to take back everything that belonged to them. To take back their home.

“Rose!” Ignatius’ voice boomed and I scanned the area until I met his green dull eyes that looked a bit of orange due to the lightning, he walked towards me without taking his eyes off of me and I felt beautiful under his gaze, I felt loved.

He was wearing a black turtle neck with grey jeans and black boots, he looked in his element and in charge of everything around him, unlike me. “You look amazing” he said looking at me from head to toe, I blushed and whispered my thanks to him.

I was in love with him, from his hair to his toes. I was in love with Ignatius; he was pure and carefree; he was everything I wasn’t. I should have been jealous, but I could not help but want to be that person to keep his carefree -self safe. I wanted to be the person who made him smile. It sounded selfish but I did not care.

We were dancing to some old songs from three hundred years ago, having fun in each other’s company and singing at the top of our lungs when the music stopped causing us to stop dancing with frowns on our faces “Hey Cloe! What’s going on?!” Ms. Nama yelled a little slurry.

Cloe, who was in charge of the music shook her head with the same frown, I had a gut feeling something bad was about to happen since morning, I could not shake it off and now this happening just made my stomach feel unease. Ignatius looked at me with concern and pulled me towards his side “don’t worry, it’s probably nothing” he whispered, and I hesitantly nodded my head.

Then the lights started flicking just as the ground started shaking and that’s when the panic kicked in. People started murmuring saying they want to go home, but without any light no one could see a thing until the door opened with a bang startling everyone, that is when I heard someone scream “Maliens! Maliens are attacking!” immediately those words were said the screams outside could be heard and everyone started running.

My eyes adjusted to the darkness and I saw Ignatius looking around frequently even though he could not see me, I quickly made my way towards him with great struggle “Iggy!” Willow yelled from somewhere in the chaos around us, Iggy made a move to her voice but we all froze as the gunshot echoed around us.

Why is this happening? Why now? Why here? When I was finally happy! When I had decided to leave everything behind me! Why me?! I wondered as people started running quicker eager to get out, I lost Ignatius in the masses of people. I needed to get out. I did not want to die. Not yet.

The building shook as an entire wall exploded killing those around it, smoke filled our lungs and rings are all we could hear. My vision blurred for a while until I could see the scene in front of me; about ten- no twenty people whether young or old laid in awkward positions covered in bruises and blood, people were clutching their ears and screaming, others covered their noses with tear stained faces.

A deciphered figure stood in the smoke scanning the area like an artist admiring his art, I stood up from my crouching position watching everyone notice the guy in the smoke “Rose! Rose, where are you?!” Ignatius called out causing the man to look in his direction.

My eyes widened as I noticed a familiar gun in his hand, but his was larger and was in bright colors. I quickly ran to where Ignatius was, afraid that he might die, Afraid that I might lose someone important to me.

In my peripheral vision, I saw the man lift his arm and point it towards Ignatius’ head who was carelessly looking for me ‘No!’ I thought as I pushed my legs faster in human form, I had not told anyone about my past or what I was. If they asked, I would simply just stay quiet and give them the basics.

I was not healing properly and my left arm was still making that clicking sound, but I ignored it and ran faster but I was not fast enough as the sound of the gun been fired reached my sensitive ears and Ignatius dropped to the ground causing Willow and Ms. Nama to scream and gasp.

I stopped running feeling my heart beat violently against my ribcage, and my breath came out forced and rushed. It’s like I was drowning, falling in a never ending dark hole. I did not like feeling helpless. I did not like losing people who I cared about. I did not like being the cause of their misfortune.

My mind shut off like a light switch and my body turned to the man who was smiling at Ignatius’ unmoving body, the man disappeared and the beast of a man appeared. He was taunting me, mocking me for disobeying one of his rules again. Never get attached.

I was angry at myself. I was ashamed at who I had become. I had forgotten what my purpose was, why I came here in the first place. I cursed myself for the thousandth times. My foolishness caused that to happen. And I took full responsibility of the deaths around me and the injuries they had, and for the scars that they would carry because of me. I made a silent promise to repay the man tenfold for what he had done.

“What’s my body productivity level?” I asked Omega “Sixty- seven percent” it replied and I sighed knowing that there would be a small risk of me dying but a high risk of me surviving. But I was a risk taker, so what the heck? I thought and removed the shoes Mercy made me wear.

People were still running but I paid them no mind, my eyes did not leave the target as he started scanning once again, like he was looking for something or someone. I felt the familiar warmth on my palms as a small fire ball started forming. I threw it at him and it’s like he saw it because he dodged it by a centimeter.

He looked at me with astonishment and curiosity but I did not miss the shift in the air as he gripped the gun tightly “So, you are the one I have been sent to kill?” he whispered somehow knowing my sensitive ears could hear him. Sent? I thought, who would want to kill me?

My frown did not go unnoticed by him “the Malien government see you as a threat which is to be eradicated as soon as possible” he said and I stiffened as my memory went back to Ody, my first victim who just so happened to be a Malien soldier. Damn it.

When he saw I was not going to talk, he raised the gun at me and I tensed not liking been at the other side of the gun that being the death part “Close your eyes and you won’t even feel a thing” he whispered like a prayer that will magically atone me for my sins “I’m afraid I cannot die today” I said strongly taking a step forward, he watched me with a calculating gaze following my every move.

“Who is he?” I asked Omega and waited as it scanned him “Orion Daniels also known as god hunter in the field. Aged nineteen. Malien specialist. Power rank level three. Number of deaths: three hundred and thirty- nine. Strength: Air. Weaknesses: high blood pressure and fire” it said and I gapped at him. Fuck! I’m screwed, I thought.

Three hundred! He had killed three hundred and thirty- nine people!

The odds were against me, he had skill and strength. He has done this three hundred times, me on the other hand only did it once, and I had zero physical skill and strength was a myth to me. But I could not back out not that I wanted, I just needed to mentally abuse him and watch him destroy himself.

At that moment I thanked the beast of a man, because of his words I pushed through all the odds the universe was throwing my way. The mind was every creatures’ greatest enemy.

I was so lost in thought that there was no one within the building, no one alive actually. My gaze landed on Ignatius’ body and my heart clenched knowing I’m the cause of his death. Orion took my distraction as an opportunity and next thing I knew I was clenching my bleeding shoulder as pain cruised through me, I groaned making him snicker “Rule number one in battle, never get distracted” he said walking towards me in slow strides.

My veins burned like I was lit on fire, and I knew at that moment that the bullet was not ordinary “I shot you with Malien blood, a human would have been died within the past twenty seconds due to it been acidic, but seeing you aren’t dead yet. I’m guessing you aren’t human” he stated and I groaned again “reusing substance” omega said and before I could even comprehend what was happening.

My left arm stretched towards him and bright hot blue flames emerged from my palms burning him, he screamed as he tried to step back but was already caught in the flames. I smirked as the air around us started to swirl and twirl violently causing the fire to increase “Shit!” he cussed out as I heard his heartbeat. Weakness: high blood pressure.

“That’s going to leave a scar,” he trailed off ripping off what was left of his shirt revealing a chiseled six pack covered with ashes and some parts of it revealed the Malien green skin that they hid from us “You should say your last words, no one who had gotten me this injured and has lived to tell the tale” he said as he finally looked at me with his eyes glowing blue like some acid was poured into them and the air shifted. What happened earlier was child’s play, what was about to happen was something I could not erase.

This was not a battle. This was war. And there is only one rule in war:

There are no rules.