Simon and Rosa

Fiona looked at the revolver in Drayce's hand. "What are you planning to do with...?"

Her eyes glowed incandescent scarlet. She jerked the pistol from his hand and crushed it in hers. "Don't you ever think again of doing that!"

"What does it matter to you, huh?" Drayce shouted back, standing from the couch. "You said it yourself; you only care about your own fucking survival! You're a demon, what the fuck do you know about love or compassion?!"

Fiona's eyes glowed brighter than Drayce had ever seen. Infuriated, she used her magic to jerk Drayce across the coffee table. His head landed between Fiona's hands. She glared into his eyes while pressing hard against his temples.

"If you're going to kill me, do it!" he taunted.

Drayce's vision blurred as the pain in his mind escalated. His nose bled; the pain was infinitely worse than any migraine, even worse than Anariel's "reading". It was as if his brain was melting.

"Do it!" he shouted.

Fiona did not let up. The pressure she applied to his skull felt like a torturous vise. He rolled his eyes into the back of his head, accepting his doom. Drayce's limp body fell to the floor at Fiona's feet.

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"Ugh!" Drayce grunted as he regained consciousness. Had his head been hit by a freight train? Sure felt like it. Blurred vision, ringing ears, and numbness all wracked his body. Questions crept into his awareness.

Am I dead?

He lay on his back. The darkness above him came slowly into focus. He was staring at a clear night sky; the stars and moon shone brightly. When the ringing in his ears faded, he could hear the peaceful sounds of crickets and owls in the distance.

Drayce's leg muscles stopped twitching. He found the strength to stand, and took in his surroundings. He was outside in a small clearing of knee high grass illuminated by moonlight. A gentle breeze swept across the plains and kissed his face.

Where am I?

With no knowledge of where he was or how he got to his current location, Drayce tried to figure out what to do. "Keep going in one direction," he thought. "Bound to run into something or someone eventually."

Trees surrounded Drayce in the near distance, broken only by a gap under the brightly burnished full moon. "I'll just get lost if I wander through the woods at night." He chose his direction and began his journey into the unknown night.

He walked on shaky legs for what seemed like forever through the grassy field until a faint sound stopped him in his tracks. He listened closely; it was a woman's voice, humming or singing.

Why would someone be singing out here in the middle of nowhere? No matter; at least this person could tell him where he was.

Drayce followed the sound. The angelic voice gained audibility as he pressed onward. He came to a small forest grove that blocked his path toward the voice. Knowing the risks, he moved into the dense trees.

It was completely dark. Drayce reached out, careful to not let a branch smack his face. All he had to guide him was the light voice. The creepy stirring of trees and howling of nearby wolves unnerved him. He quickened his pace.

He saw a faint light through the thick forest. The voice becoming louder with every step. His resolve tightened as he hoped for a way out of this mess; he pressed brusquely through the branches.

As Drayce pushed the final branch out of his way, he focused his eyes on the source of the mesmerizing voice. It was indeed a woman, humming with her back turned towards him. Her long blonde hair and light blue dress blew gently in the midnight breeze.

"Hello?" Drayce called out.

She gave no response but continued her enchanting melody. Drayce approached the woman slowly, careful not to startle her.

"Excuse me. I seem to be lost. Could you tell me where I am?"

Again, no response. Was she deaf? No, that cannot be. A deaf person does not sing so heavenly.

"Hello?" Drayce spoke louder as he reached his hand out to touch her shoulder. Shock overwhelmed him as his hand passed through her body as if he were a ghost.

"What the hell?!"

Drayce looked ahead. A cliff with jagged rocks fell just a few feet before them, offering quite a view of the moonlit countryside. He looked down the steep ledge and saw a primitive-looking village of decent size. The settlement looked quiet but not abandoned, apparent from lit torches and small camp fires.

Turning back around, Drayce eyes widened as he looked at the woman with the mesmerizing voice. He instantly recognized those facial features.

"Fiona?!"

She was different, however. Her raven colored hair was now blonde. Her eyes were a bright blue that sparkled in the moonlight. Her figure remained otherwise unchanged, as far as he could tell. Her attire was very modest, covering most of her body, much unlike the Fiona he knew.

"Where are we?" Drayce asked.

The sound of a galloping horse approaching behind her diverted her attention. Atop the horse was a young-looking dark-haired man wearing chain mail and red-accented clothing.

"Simon!" she shouted, rushing to greet him.

"Rosa!" the man said as he hopped off his horse and held her in his arms. They held each other in a tight lover's embrace.

Rosa? Was that Fiona's real name? Or was she someone else? Drayce had been confused the moment he awakened. Things made less and less sense the longer he stayed here, wherever here actually was.

He had to think. "You're a detective, figure it out!" he told himself. Obviously he was not in Chicago anymore, nor did he believe even the same time period. As absurd as it sounded, he wondered if Fiona sent him back in time. Then why does no one notice him? There must be more it.

"I'm so glad you're safe!" Rosa said, leaning her head against Simon's chest.

"I wish I could say the same for Christoph," he sighed.

Rosa looked into Simon's eyes. She could see the pain he hid behind them. "Did you find him?"

A tear escaped his sorrowful eyes. "We tracked him to an abandoned church just over the horizon. The fool knew demons were hiding there! I told him not to go alone! We found his body in pieces, his head impaled on a spear."

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