Awakening Part 1

The next morning I was currently sweating very badly. I had weights tied to my ankles, wrists, and a bag on my back filled with rocks. Once my mother found out about my strength, she automatically decided she would increase my training. So now I was in my human form, suffering under a true demon.

When I told my family about what had happened last night and my plans to counter their control over my life, my father praised me to no end, my mother broke a table out of anger, and Mimi told me she would fight them along with me at my side. This, in turn, is why she was now running along with me, albeit without weights. "Bella, you can do it!" Mimi tried her best to encourage me. But it was hard, you know. My mother made sure the weights were right at the border of what I could handle. So it was not the easiest of tasks to do this training. To be honest, I have no idea where she found these weights!

When noontime arrived, I laid flat on the ground facing the sky. Mimi was next to me, breathing heavily as well. Sweat dripped from her brow. "Bella, we will get stronger!"

I smiled and looked over at the chubby faced girl. "Mmm… My fate is my own. I will never allow anyone to control it."

"Mmm! My daughter's words are correct! You are in control of your life. And I will make sure you are ready for anything!"

And so my rigorous training continued….

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A whole week since the day my father said he would take me to awaken my elements has now passed. I was currently being dressed up in ceremonial attire. It was a blue robe with golden fringes. We were heading to the Church of Spirits. From what Mimi and my mother told me, it is the only faith in this world. A church that spans through every kingdom. The Church of Spirits worships the elements of magic themselves. No element is seen as bad. Even darkness, one of the rare elements, is worshiped in the same way. To them, magic is a blessing from the spirit gods. And it was those same beings' underlings that I think I met, well, maybe not exactly the same. I felt like the demon and angel I met that night were just the foot soldiers of the people in charge. The ones running the show behind the scenes and the ones who created my system.

I can not say this with absolute certainty in this train of thought. But I do feel this to be the honest truth. If I were to put second life's belief on the table where they had many churches and many gods, there was one that stated that angels and demons were the underlings of greater beings.

And the demon and angel also said something about what they rule over. They did not rule over everything but only one certain aspect, a single sin, and a single virtue. This has led me to believe that they are indeed only soldiers. Well, maybe more like the leaders of their own massive armies. Or, to put it in simpler terms, they are the dukes who are second only to the king.

But one thing does bother me. If I am able to become a demon or angel, will I be affected by these sins and virtues as well? There was still a lot I did not know, and I can only hope I will always have my sanity about me. I also do not know what the other sins and virtues are.

After getting dressed, my mother helped do my hair. Normally this was Mimi's job, but today was a special day. "Bella. There are three times when a mother is supposed to do their daughter's hair like this. The first time is during their awakening. The second is during their coming of age. And the last and third time is when they marry the person they love. Each time a mother is supposed to put an ornament in their daughter's hair. And this time, I had someone craft something special."

My mother held out a hair ornament. It was a hair stick, but at the end of it, there were a set of wings. One side was black, the other side was white, and In the middle between the two was a strip of gray. I could tell my mother put a lot of thought into this ornament. My demon side… My angel side. And also my neutral side. And at the base of the wing was a small blue jewel that glimmered in the light. The jewel was the same color as my eyes. "It's beautiful."

"I am glad you like it." My mother said as she inserted it into my hair. She hugged me from behind and looked at me through the mirror. "It looks good on you."

"Thanks," I replied with a smile and leaned my head back into her. The hair stick was very pretty.

We got into the carriage and road for an hour to the church. The tall towering white cathedral building stood high up off the ground. It even had two towers on each side that rose even higher than the top of the main building. The front entry had many statues of varying colors, all depicting beautiful women in robes with wings on their back. My guess is that this was supposed to be the depiction of the spirits.

The front doors were made of wood with metal handles. The large round handles were bigger than my own head, but I think they were more for decoration than anything. I walked inside to see a room with many rows of wooden benches and in the front was a podium that stood on a raised floor with more statues of the spirits before it. The colorful glass that adorned the church's windows all had different spirits depicted in them.

There were many parents and their children here, and there was a group that was noticeably dressed up beyond what was really needed. And sadly, I knew the two children who standing with their parents. Princess Leslie and Prince Zack, both members of the royal family. Princess Leslie was the one who wanted me killed due to me being prettier than her. Humph! Let's see you try to get me killed now!

"You!" A shrill scream came from in front of us. Princess Leslie must have felt me looking at her because she turned and spotted me instantly and pointed right at me while yelling.

"Mother, can I beat her up?" I asked. I mean, please? Just once will do! I will make sure she is very submissive.

"Hehe. I wish I could say yes, but she is the king's daughter after all and your cousin, so it would be best if you did not. Although if she sends knights at you again, you can beat them up." My mother answered while I nodded my head. I could see my father placing his head in his hands.

"Martha, please do not turn my angel into another you." My father said in a low whisper. Then there was a sharp cry as my mother stomped on his foot. I couldn't help but giggle.

"Haha! Devan, you are here!" A man in red robes with a crown on his head walked over with a bright smile. I was surprised at how much he looked like my father. There was no way anyone would mistake the two as anything but brothers. After all, this man was indeed the king, Raymond Lionheart.

"You! Why did you come here!? Why did you even dress up!? Hurry up and take that off and give me that hairpin!" Princess Leslie yelled out as she ran right towards me, but before she could even get near me, Ray, my brother, suddenly stepped out in front of me.

"Princess Leslie, I think it's time for you to stop being jealous of my sister. Princess og not, if you lay a hand on her, I do not mind laying mine on you." I was stunned at my brother's words because his voice was very cold. I wonder if the kidnapping had changed him a little. But I did feel warmth in my heart, knowing my brother was willing to stand up for me.

"You! You would hit me!? Who do you think you are!? Guards, kill this impudent fool!" Princess Leslie yelled out.

"Leslie! Mind your manners this instant!" King Lionheart's voice rumbled across the cathedral like thunder.

Princess Leslie quickly shrank back. I guess out of everyone in the world, she was scared of her father. It was then that Prince Zack walked over. "I do apologize for my sister. She is quite spoiled and does not get enough teaching in the castle. I will be sure to ask her nanny to discipline her properly from now on."

For some reason, Prince Zack was staring at me the entire time he said this. I do not know why he was staring at me, but I did not feel any malice in his eyes. But before I could even answer, Ray spoke up again. "This goes beyond not being taught properly!"

"Ray!" My father yelled out. This time it was Ray's turn to shrink back.

I, of course, would back him up! "Father, I did not wish to say anything, but it is true that this is not the first time that this has happened."