Chapter Nine

I use to shudder at the thought of what a wonderful world this could be, but with everything that has happened, I"m not so sure anymore. I use to wonder to myself late at night, what a wonderful world this could be without bloody wars and negativity turned/used for violence and senseless crime? I think if there's one thing Mom didn't prepare me for, before she and Dad were taken, it'd have to be to truly see clearly. What does that mean exactly? I think it means to be taught to see the world for the truth, to truly be aware of everything and everyone around you. The bad and the good? The blood and the crimes? Back in my hometown there wasn't to much of that. Crime and violence was a rare occurrence, but what were they thinking? That they could keep me young and naive forever? I"d kill to have the knowledge I know now, mostly because I'm safer with it than I ever was before.

Valerian's words repeated in the front of her mind more times than she liked to ever admit. They were tearing her from in and out of sleep, with heavy breaths of dry, but fresh ai bringing a smile to her distressed face every single time her bright eyes found the sight of him. How peaceful he looked wrapped in sleep's grasp? A young boy forced into a world of hell and monsters, only to look the most alive and peaceful during the few hours he was unconscious? Faith couldn't help but wonder if he'd been better of dead. A part of her felt shame and guilt for thinking that, but the stronger, commanding leader side of her, knew there was some sense to it. There was, and no matter how much she tried to convince herself that part of her was right, her heart still ached at the taste of cruelty. If they'd all died, her parents wouldn't be gone? Valerian and the others would never have to face an another Arrow ever again! The past could relive itself the die out all over again?! Then in a couple millennium a new population would grow, and maybe a part in history where the humans could come back, would take place for the second time.

Someone had to fight

Someone had to keep back the monsters.

It was clear to her that the gods weren't concerned with the Arrow problem, seening as most of them had been on Earth for how many years? Faith did not know, but it made sense for them by the size of the base they'd built, that indeed some time had gone by since the first attack, to the creation and vote of Faith's commandment.

As she tried to push the recent thoughts outta of her mind, she felt the heavy, weight of all them lifting, only to open her eyes up to the new tune the beat of drums inside her chest, began playing. A gust of wind blew straight past her from the thin, wooden, walls, resulting in the wind speeding past her bare skin, as she motioned for more sleep. Her mind seemed to be at its strongest still, but as for her body, she still felt a few aches and tears in places she knew would take the longest to heal. She tried to lay her head back down to the pillow, only till a voice began specking to her, did she open her ears as wide as she could. ''Faith?'' The voice belonged to Valerian, he was awake now, and staring at her with the most intense, and sharpened stare she'd ever seen on anyone before. Her eyes lit up in surprise, as she pushed herself to her side, arm capturing her thigh, as she returned his intense expression. ''Yeah,'' she paused, chocking back the bile burning the back of her throat. Once she felt her throat clear, she nodded, and smiled. ''Much better now, thank you.''

''So,'' he started. ''Are you sure about everything? Everything meaning I know what you had planned for today, I guess what I"m trying to ask you is, are you sure you wanna go back there? To the other base? The one home to gods, you said?'' Valerian's voice sounded of confusion, terror, and unsurety at all the same time. Faith wasn't sure how to respond in a way that would make him feel safer about her going, but she wasn't sure how to proceed. If there was one thing she knew all to well, was when Valerian Crow is unsure, or scared about something, there's usually no way to get him off or away from it. ''I think so, yes,'' Faith replied. ''Besides Valdin will be there with me, he wouldn't let anything happen to me. I'm sure of it!''

''But are you sure! Sure, sure, you wanna do this?! I mean it could be scary, there could be gods who may treat you badly! Gods who may want to hurt you!'' Valerian closed his mouth, hopeful to rid the taste of sandpaper and achieve to get some liquid to ease the dryness along his tongue, as after a couple seconds he was right back at it. ''They might not let you leave?! You and Alias escaped once, you might not get lucky a second time!'' He barked. Faith pressed her eyelids shut, blew out a frustrated breath, then opened them, to look at him. ''It's always going to be this way, Valerian. It's always going to be a bloody, bloody world,'' She says. ''Only nowadays, some people's blood is better than others. In this case I mean the Arrows. I must prefer to return home covered in their blood, than any of you.'' Faith was quick to swallow the dryness forming in the back of her throat, clearing it before she placed all her power into her next pair of words. ''Valdin....'' She smiled at the sight of Valerian, a part of her mind transforming his face, till she could make out Valdin's features inside Valerian's sharp eyes. ''I think I"m starting to feel something for him? A connection, a bond? A really good friendship turned to something more? Something deeper.....'' She wasn't exactly sure when it happened. Or when it all started happening. All she knew for sure was that right now, right at this very moment, face to face with the young man who she called her ''best friend'' she was sure, sure of one fact, and one fact alone. That fact, she was not in love with Valerian Crow. The drums in her chest boomed, loudly. Almost loud enough to cause her ears to fail, but not even close to blind herself from the dark, saddened expression on Valerian's face.

The blood left her head in a race with her heart, as the pool of blood pooled into her shoes, moving up to her knees, till she felt herself shivering. Blood plused painfully in her throat, and her face grew with warmth and embarrassment as her mind burned with his last disappointed sigh of oxygen he'd been holding. ''I"ve known this entire time.'' He whispered, voice deep. ''You don't have to explain yourself to me, honestly, truly, I won't say I"m disappointed you found the person made for you.'' His words seemed to tiggle the surface of her cheeks, as she'd pushed herself to a sitting position earlier, knees draped over the side. ''I understand things with Cardin are kind of rocky, and I understand it may be strange for you to develop feelings for me, after things with my brother weren't turning out, just know that I don't blame or resent you for anything you may have said. I can see Cardin would've been the death of you, if your feelings didn't change.''

''I don't understand what you mean? Why are you saying such things like that, about your own brother? Did something happen I"m not aware of?'' The blood rushed from below to her cheeks, and her feet involuntarily swung back and forth in the front of the bed frame, but she could not find the will to jump up, or move a single toe. She feared something darker was being masked by Valerian's enchanted speech. She wanted to press him, to beat the meaning out of him, but unfortunately for her, she felt her eyes growing misty under the weight of bags and dark clouds surrounded the skin under her eyes, till she saw nothing clearly, her pulse felt like it was beating a hundred times in the last couple minuets, as the dark blood throbbed at her heart, kicking and screaming, till the smell of smoke caused her tears to freeze, as she looked up intensity, towards the shut door leading out into the middle of the base/camp.

* * *

It was her dream all over again. The flashes of light, of darkness, and blood. With the scent of sulfur and painful death biting and swallowing patches of her dead flesh, burning. The kiss of flames, the hugs of shadows, how quickly her parent's house, her home, had gone up in plies of black. Furniture unfortunately carved from wood, stealing away the freshness of the home she'd once shared such loving memories. It took nearly half an hour for the fires to spread everywhere, and another fifteen minuets for wood and pieces of broken, mast, wall paper, accompanied by patches of white paint, melting on the surface of her fingers, as the heat from her skin, cooked the love out of everything. It only took a moment for her eyes to find Valerian's younger eyes. He was there, standing behind her, half of his face stained with crimson. She wanted to hide, to flee, to get away from everything and never ever come back. But instead, shivering violently, from god's tears, she lifted herself up and over patches of cement coated in fresh scarlet, arms out wide, warmth colliding till the two bodies formed into one. That day, Faith knew Valerian was different. That there was something complelty different about him, than anyone she'd met before.

A stormy night burning with the scents of blood and of death. A friendship had formed. A friendship formed by the secrets they kept, the hearts that had been broken, the lies, and yet, they walked away, said goodbye and sworn it was forever. And somehow, every single time since then, they were mended, they were forgiven. That day I'd been falling. Falling through time, through space, and stars, and falling from the sky. And still everything in between. I fell for days and weeks, and what felt like a lifetime across lifetimes. Only when I found Valerian did I sease falling, and found I was capable of flying.

The smell of smoke followed by ashes, echoed in her head, as she walked around mindlessly, blindly for several moments, unable to see from the thickness of the smoke that kept her eyes covered. The view reminded her of what it felt like to walk around aimlessly, with a thick, blinding, blindfold tied around your head. Her hands were pinned to her front, aimlessly, as the luck she thought she had, faded only to return slowly. Only when the cold burning in her lungs made her stop, did her face soften. The warming grip he held on her wrist, masking some of fear and control the smoke had upon her.

''Valerian!'' She shouted once she caught a hold on him. ''The place is going up in flames, we need to escape!'' A burning sensation began in her throat and she realized death was upon her again. This grim reaper wasn't going to let his grip on her, loose. Faith could barely see past the darkness that kept a tight grip on her vision. The bright, orange light of the flames shone brighter, the hotter the temperatures rose, resulting in a large amount of sweat, rolling down her cheeks, colliding with her tears, as she felt Valerian's grip on her wrist loosen, till she felt it no longer. ''Valerian!'' She cried. Smoke captured her nose, chocking the top of her faces, as she gagged. Falling to her knees in an attempt to breath in fresh oxygen, her mind rattled, spilling out through the holes in her shoes, as she felt her blood starting to boil. She was unable to think, unable to function, unable to scream for her help, as her lungs filled to the surface with flames, and hot blood. She knew she was dying. Soon she'd be dead, soon the secret desire inside her wouldn't have to be a secret anymore.

The desire to die was going to become a reality,

in exactly 10 minuets

Since that ash, smoke covered day, she'd been stumbling through life in a haunting fog, of misery, unable to mourn, unable to forget all the blood that stained her palms. In a last attempt to see herself survive, she forced her legs to move, stumbling from her knees, pushing up to her feet till she was standing. Stumbling and almost falling back down in a vision of smoke, she felt something hard against her side, then a pair of arms captured every part of her. She leaned, pressing herself into the thick, hard, mass of the surface. The touch was like white fire flooding through her veins in an attempt to cool her boiling blood, and return her temperature to normal. He could not feel her skin, only the leftover fabrics of the clothing she'd been wearing, now left in scraps, as bare skin stained with scars, and puddles of burnt flesh, burned an image into his mind. One that he knew would cause great agony later.....

* * *

The next thing Faith opened her eyes too was the restful expression of Liarrin and Angel. Both their expressions softened with tears, masking the concern she placed they had for her. She was safe, though her skin reeked of leftover smoke, as a single touch upon her own body, was still just as hot, capable of burning away the very nails she had that made up her fingers if she wasn't careful.

''Thank goodness!'' Breathed Liarrin. Before she could even think about sitting herself up, she was overcome by strength, and cold. LIarrin had pulled her into a hug strong enough to keep her there as long as he wished. Even though she felt her ribs crushing from the tight squeeze, she slowed her thoughts, letting them turn to pools of water, left sitting at the bottom of her stomach, as she melting like snow against him. A part of her had forgotten how it'd felt to escape death's grip, how the warmth of another could heal the wounds of the wounded, if granted. ''I know this won't last forever, but as long as you'll allow us, we'll do everything in our power to keep you alive.'' Liarrin whispered, as he brushed a side of her face, just below her ear, the soft, warming, touch of his breath, disposing of the heat. as Faith's neck twinkled, then shone with small beads shaped like hale, but reminded her the most of diamonds/jewels.

* * *

Heavy, metal, chains sat at Valdin's feet. The scent of darkness and lingering death told him everything, he needed to know about who's wrists they were onced attached to. The contents of the basement prison brought the stench of blood, and vomit to brush past his light brown cheeks, where the scent took hold of his nose, till he turned his back, light from the nearest torch covering his face with a bright orange shine. SHame and anger brought him to his chambers, instead of downstairs where his heart begged him to go, but he knew he couldn't. What awaited him down there, was something he knew one hundred perfect would bring him more pain than he already felt. He recalled the agony as his violet eyes trailed the small letters of bold text left sliding left and right along the piece of paper, in front of him.

She was in pain, the worst part, she didn't even know why. Faith was in pain, and he couldn't even tell her how come, how come everything happened the way it did. He hadn't wanted to drag her into anything, he feared she'd get trapped inside, but what he feared most, had become exactly that.

I wasn't a hero until you forced me. I wasn't a hero until you chose to come after her. Then it was war. You crossed the line and I can't forget all the pain you caused. I won't rest until you are beaten - and I don't mean just beaten down. I mean dead. There isn't a place you can hide, that I won't find you, destroy you. I don't much care how it happens, I don't need you to suffer, I just need your cold, black eyes, extinguished from this universe. You may think this to be an overreaction over the life of some human girl, but you shouldn't have brought her into something that was between us. You underestimated how much I love her. Don't think I'll play by ''the rules'' set for us, because this time you've crossed a line.

I"m coming for you, Darin.

Just so you know that.

- Valdin

The pen dropped from his fingers, falling to the desk, in which he'd picked it up, as the Tourmaline crystal created from eleven beautiful, vibrant colors shined, directing and surrounding every corner around him. The rays of the enchanted Tourmaline crystal were created specifically for him. For the bastard son who was made into a god, who's rebirth brought him sorrow and more pain then his previously. From then on to the other gods, he was known as the bastard god who's blood was tainted with darkness, gifting him the title of

''The God of Chaos.''