Disclaimer: I don't own the Lorien Legacies…
Hi guys!
Thank you all sooooo much for your amazing reviews! 18! For my first chapter! You guys are amazing as ever and I can't thank you enough!
John's legacies will be revealed soon, but not so much in this chapter since he doesn't have a POV. But they will come up soon :D Promise!
Please read!
Ella
Sweat pours down my back as I lunge forward with a punch, aiming for her chin. Marina easily twirls out of the way and she throws a kick to my knee. I stumble back but with a strong surge of determination, I lunge forward again with another punch, hitting her successfully on the cheek.
"Ella! Marina!" I stop my attack at once at the command from General Rowland.
He's one of those Generals who believe in the old ways where woman should not be allowed to fight. He's very strict with us, probably hoping that we'll crack under the pressure. I know Two is terrified of him but she still continues with her training, despite it all.
"That's enough you two! Three laps around the track and then you can go" Marina groans next to me as we look at each other in annoyance.
Since Marina, Two and I are the worst fighters out of the girls, we have longer training sessions. Five and Six finished an hour ago but we have to stay on. Two isn't joining us tonight though since she has a migraine.
She has no idea how envious I am of her.
"Let's go. I can't be bothered with him tonight" Marina mutters as we push open the doors to the outside.
The track is my enemy. It's a six-mile long circuit that stretches through the woods nearby and at night, it's really creepy. Luckily Marina has night vision but still, it's freaky. We usually only do it in the evening in a big group.
"Maybe we should pretend to only do three and really we do one" I suggest but Marina shakes her head. Ever since Henri punished her with the agent who follows her, she's been insistent on following the rules.
We begin our run, both of us exhausted by the day. Neither of us wants to do this but it's better than being inside with the devil, as Nine calls General Rowland.
"How's your 'shadow'?" I ask Marina. She groans, not out of breath yet like I am. Super speed is sure handy.
"It's so frustrating! You have no idea of the comments I've been getting at school!" she complains.
Ever since Marina and Six skipped school last week for a shopping trip, they've been followed around school by one of the teachers as well as by an agent at the base, who must know we're very important. I know Marina's been pushed to the limit with the comments about the guy following her.
"Don't worry, I talked to Papa and he said Henri would stop the whole thing soon" I reassure her. Marina smiles in the dark, looking around us. We've only run three miles and I'm already exhausted.
"You know what? I'm tempted to say let's skip this and just go. Screw the consequences" she says. I look at her hopefully as we slow down. We're right in the depths of the forest and it's very creepy now. I don't feel very safe as I look around.
"Let's go back, this place creeps me out" I say as I watch the ominous shadows. Marina nods, taking a firm grip of my hand as she looks around.
We've barely made five steps when something slams into me and I tumble to the ground. I hear sounds of a struggle further on as I feel a knife pressed to my throat.
"Let us go!" I hear Marina shout as she's dragged to her feet. Torches flash around us and I recognise the guy that walked into Nine last week, the one he looked like he wanted to break. There are four others here; all soldiers, all male.
That doesn't reassure me at all.
"What do you want?" I ask nervously. One of them grins and shrugs.
"General Rowland said we could have you two as a reward for training hard" he says, moving closer to me. Marina tries to move in my direction but she's thrown to the floor and kicked roughly. I cry out her name as one of the guys moves to me, stroking my cheek.
"She's thirteen!" Marina yells. "How sick are you?!" she demands.
"Pretty bad" one of them says with a laugh as he grabs my arm. I whimper, not sure what to do. I don't even understand what the implication is but I guess it's bad.
Fight, Ella. That's the only way.
With a cry, I slam my elbow into one of the men's stomachs. He yelps and falls back into the ground whilst another is rushing for me. Marina jumps up and grabs him with super speed, throwing him into a nearby tree where he falls unconscious. One man grabs her around the waist and viciously hits the back of her head, knocking her out and then dropping her to the ground.
It's only me now.
I lunge forward to the man on the ground, naturally faster than the men here. I grab his arm and twist it, making him howl. Another man lunges forward and strikes me on the cheek but I fight through the pain and kick out at him. I swing the first man towards the second and they collapse to the ground.
Nine! Six! Eight! I need help! I call using telepathy. They'll come, I know they will. I have no time or energy to communicate further, not even when I hear their frenzied replies in my mind.
The two men on the ground try to get up as the other two remaining make a grab for me. I dodge again and issue a series of complex moves, knocking them to the ground. It's not enough though; these men are trained just like me and just as strong. I'm only 13, after all.
One of the men wanders over to Marina, grabbing her limp body whilst the other three march towards me. I watch in horror as the man drags her away into the darkness.
What will he do to her?!
"NO!" I shriek and a huge incredible power burns in me. I feel something strong and deadly rise in me and unable to control it anymore, I realise the power.
Ice shoots out of my hands and coats one of the soldiers, making him like a solid ice-cube. I stagger as energy runs out of me but I have to save Marina. I aim my hands at another man and coat his ankles with ice, making him unable to move.
"Do you really want to try me?" I say, my voice shaking in anger as I turn to the other two men. They take one look at each other and then run away. I grin at my temporary triumph and then remember Marina.
I race towards the direction where that evil man took her but instead of seeing her being beaten, she's sitting up, healing her head as she looks at the unconscious man nearby. I race to her and fall to my knees next to her, taking her hand.
"Mar! Did he hurt you?!" I ask, looking desperately at her. He can't hurt my older sister, he can't.
"No, no, I'm all right" she whispers, clearly in shock. She's shivering and it makes me wonder what exactly happened before she managed to knock him out. I wrap my arms, noticing how badly she's shaking and I nuzzle my head into her neck.
"I got a new legacy" I whisper, trying to distract her. Her face lights up in a smile and she pulls back, stroking my face.
"That's amazing! What is it?!" she asks, though her eyes are still clouded. I explain what happened and she smiles, squeezing my arm.
"Sounds like ice manipulation or whatever it's called" she says, her voice low. I'm about to ask if she's really all right when there's a loud crashing noise.
We're both up on our feet at once, taking fighting positions as the crashing gets louder. Marina looks determined and I know I'm ready to use my new legacy.
Something hurls its way into the small clearing and then my chimaera, Scooby, throws himself at me in dog form. I giggle and clutch him, as he licks my face. He's shortly followed by Eight, Six and Nine who have clearly been pushing themselves to the limit trying to get to us.
"What happened?!" Six demands, placing her hands on her knees as her eyes fall on the unconscious man. Eight teleports over and Marina reaches out for him, still clearly in shock. I don't understand what's happening but Nine's eyes darken in anger.
"We were attacked... they were going to hurt us" I stammer. Scooby turns into a tiger and looks out into the darkness, his message clear: No one messes with my Garde.
"Are you guys ok?" Eight asks, Marina clinging to his hand. She nods and smiles, gesturing to me.
"Ella got a new legacy" she manages. Nine whoops and races over, swinging me in a circle. I laugh and hold onto him as the trees flash past.
"That's awesome, kid! What is it?!" he asks when he puts me down. Six comes over to congratulate me and so does Eight but I can't help but notice Marina's wary gaze as she looks at the man on the ground.
Xxx
"Marina, what did he do?" I ask as I settle on the sofa, a cup of hot chocolate in my hand. She's sitting next to me, also wrapped up in a blanket. Scooby is at my feet as a cat, snoozing, but I know if there's any threat at all, he'll be prepared. Nearby, Henri is barking on his phone, furiously pacing around. Apparently he wants an investigation to be done on General Rowland.
"Nothing, Ella" she whispers, smoothing some hair away from my face. Papa is nearby, equally angry, as he holds a gun tightly in his hands. Eight is sitting on a chair next to us, his eyes centred on Marina.
"But you look so upset" I say. She sighs and looks away, towards Eight who simply takes her hand.
"Ella, do you know what they were going to do?" she asks me slowly. I look up uncertainly as Marina takes my hand gently.
"They were going to hurt us" I say innocently. She smiles sadly and brushes some hair away from my face.
"Ella, you have to listen to me. Whenever men approach you like that, you have to run. They'll do more than hurt you, they would have done that tonight. They were about to do that to me before I managed to fight him off" she says, stroking my cheek. I furrow my brow in confusion as Eight clenches his jaw, his knuckles white.
"What?" I ask confused. "What's worse than being hurt?"
"Ella, it's not something for you to know just yet... maybe when you're older" Eight says. "But I will say this. I will never let anything like that happen to you or Marina ever again" he says fiercely, making Marina reach out and brush his cheek. He blushes but looks pleased, making me smile.
"But we're ok, right?" I ask. Marina smiles gently and nods.
"Yeah, we're safe now. I won't let anything happen to you either" she says. "We're a team"
I grin happily and hug her tightly, glad to still have her.
"We're a team" I echo.
Xxx
Crayton
"Is there anything they can do?!" I demand, my hand on my gun as Henri slams the phone down. Nearby Ella and Marina are huddled on a sofa, seeming ok after the whole incident. Ella, my dear little Ella, is still too young to really understand.
"She's thirteen" my voice is shaking in anger and fear. "Thirteen" I say again. Henri nods angrily, pinching the bridge of his nose as he glares at the floor.
"They'll be a punishment for the soldiers of course... but they can't link General Rowland" he explains tightly. I want to punch a wall but I know that will scare Ella.
She's still so young for all of this. She shouldn't be in this war, instead she should be going to school, playing with Chimaera, coming into her legacies at a Garde academy. She shouldn't be huddled in bed after an attack by men of at least 20 years old.
Not that she really understands, thank god.
I remember when she was three. She liked to toddle to my knee, clutching her favourite teddy bear, where I would scoop her up and hold her close. I would tell her stories until she fell asleep on my chest, still smiling.
When she was seven, she had begun to ride a bike. She had fallen so many times but still got back up and tried again and again. When she finally did it, I bought her an ice cream to celebrate, one of the big ones, heaped with four different flavours and all of those wafers. She had gotten ice cream all over her face.
I still have the picture.
"Papa" I look over to see Marina and Eight disappearing, probably going to join the older Garde. Ella is by herself, apart from Scooby. I smile at the name; she always loved Scooby Doo when she was younger so the name is fitting.
"Hey, El" I say, sitting on the bed and pulling her to me. She's shrunk down to age 7, making her all the more cuter and innocent. She snuggles into my arms and I decide that I love her legacy. Not many parents can say they get the opportunity of seeing their child at their favourite age again.
"Can I have a story?" she asks. Henri leaves, giving us some privacy. I gently hold her closer to me and grin as she looks up at me with those big brown eyes of her.
"What do you want to hear about?" I ask. She shrugs and then smiles.
"Did you ever have your own family back on Lorien? A wife… children?" she asks softly. She's never really asked me but after the night she's had, how can I refuse?
"No, I didn't have anyone" I say truthfully, brushing the hair back from her face. "I'd had some girlfriends in the past but nothing serious" I say. She nods, her hand reaching for mine.
"How come you were my Cepan?" she asks, looking up at me with her big brown eyes. I melt; how is it possible that she's so adorable?
"You were my brother's daughter" I admit and her eyes widen.
"I'm your niece?" she asks but I shake my head fiercely.
"No, you're my little girl and no one else's" I say. She smiles and snuggles into my arms, agreeing with me.
"He had been married to his wife, your mother, for two years. Their names were Laya and Arun" I explain as she laps the information up. "You were their first child"
"What was I called?" she asks eagerly. I smile tenderly down at her.
"You hadn't been named. You'd been born a couple of hours before the attack and Laya couldn't decide on a name. She was very fickle" I say fondly.
"They were taking you home. Since we had healers on Lorien, Laya was fully recovered minutes after giving birth. And you were very healthy" I say, thinking of how happy and proud my brother and Laya had been.
"We were attacked by the ground force since we were on the outskirts. I'm not quite sure what happened, even to this day. I think Arun tried to protect you and Laya but I was asleep. When I woke up, Laya and Arun were dead and you were about to be killed. Instead, I murdered the mog" I explain, grief and pain heavy in my heart over the memories.
"It's all right, Papa" I smile down at her and nod.
"I got you to the airstrip, thinking there might be a ship to get us out. The ship with the others was already gone but Loridas was there, telling me and this other Cepan that there was a ship in the museum. He told me about you and your legacies as well. We left for there at once and managed to escape. The other Cepan, Mikael, ran away as soon as we got to Earth. He was scared of getting caught" I say, tears in my eyes.
Ella grips my hand and gently smiles at me. She might not be my daughter biologically but I know she's mine all the same. We have a bond that's impossible to break.
"Go to sleep Ella, you look tired" I say smoothing her hair back like I did when she was younger.
"Good night Papa" she whispers, settling down in my arms like she did when she used to be scared about the mogs.
"Night El" I reply as she drops off.
Xxx
Adam
Night is my favourite time of day now.
Sure I love training since I'm improving so much and I weirdly love going to school but night is the best time ever. It's when I can finally relax after all the stresses of the day.
I eagerly climb into bed, Sam already asleep in his bunk. Three grins at me from where he's reading some geeky magazine about spaceships and how humans think they can improve their space technology.
There's a reason Nine so imaginatively calls this 'the Geeks' bedroom'.
I close my eyes, exhaustion washing over me and dragging me to sleep in seconds. However, instead of deep blackness and unawareness, I'm pulled into this weird cloud place. It's empty and silent, or so I think at first.
"Adam?"
I turn around, my heart hammering at that voice. No I think. It can't be.
I turn around to see her, see One standing there in all her glory. Instead of staring at me incredulously, she's smirking her signature smirk with her hands on her hips. She's older now, about eighteen or older but she's still as gorgeous as ever.
"Nice to see you too, mog boy" she says. I'm just standing there speechless, probably looking very unattractive. "Welcome to my humble abode" she says, sweeping her hands around. That shocks me into talking.
"You live here?" I ask hesitantly. She rolls her eyes as she sits down, stretching out like royalty. Just like before.
"Just as intelligent as before, I see" she says, sarcasm heavy in her voice. "I'm stuck here, idiot" she says, but her smile is teasing and kind.
"One? It's really you?" I ask, my heart aching. Her face softens as she smiles gently at me.
"Yeah, it's me" she says reaching her arms out for a hug. She looks so vulnerable and I simply can't refuse the invitation.
I run forward and wrap my arms around her in a huge hug, closing my eyes in happiness. I know she's still technically dead and I'll probably have to go soon but she's here! I grip her tighter and she laughs softly, emotion deep in her voice.
"Hey Adam" she whispers. I can't help but laugh too as I pull away, still overwhelmed.
"I've missed you so much" I reply, wanting to reach out and brush some hair back from her face but I can't. Because she doesn't love me, not the way I love her.
"Me too" she replies, still choked up. I sigh and look away; I'm not sure whether to be happy or sad. Sure, it's great to see her but this just reminds me of how she'll never be alive again. Of how much pain this will cause me once she's gone.
"You've changed" she continues, looking me over. I fidget nervously; I'm not sure what to think.
"Well, I've been doing a lot of training" I explain. She smiles sadly and looks away.
"I wish I could join you and the others... meet everyone...train... I hope you're kicking some ass out there" she says, jolting out of her musing with her classic smirk. I laugh and nod, sitting down next to her as she settles down.
"Not as much as the others but I'm doing my fair share" I say. She grins as she looks out in the distance, her face thoughtful.
"And how's that dad of yours? Still as charming as ever?" she asks. A flash of pain shoots me as I think of them; despite everything he was still my father.
"He's dead. Five and I killed him" I say. One sighs sadly as she touches my arm; I think my heart jumps with joy.
"It had to be done" she says, smiling at me in pity. "But I'm proud of you, of everything you've done for my race"
My race. I'm still not really one of them, no matter how much I fight for them.
"Thanks" I say, a lump in my throat. One doesn't seem to notice as she gazes off into the distance.
"Do you think that if you come back here, you could bring me a French Grammar book?" she asks. I stare at her in amusement and shock.
"Um, why?" I ask, trying not to laugh. She grins and tosses her hair back. Even in this low light, it shines.
"Because I'm bored! I have nothing to do! So I've decided to improve my French" she says. I grin and shake my head; she's still exactly the same.
"Sure, I'll try" I say, absolutely sure that I won't be able to. All the same, the smile I get makes me feel great for lying.
"Will you ever come back?" I ask, wanting to reach out and take her hand but lacking the courage to do so. Typical, I can turn traitor against my own race but I'm terrified of taking my friend's hand.
"Maybe. If you win the war and Lorien comes back to life. Apparently, it doesn't have enough power at the moment to bring me back. I've been dead for too long" she says. I sigh and shake my head.
"That's shit" I complain. She laughs bitterly.
"That's life" she says with a sad smile. "But, I can't change my lot so I have to deal with it" she says, resting her head on her knees. Her optimism impresses me and I finally get the courage to reach out and take her hand. She doesn't say a thing but I think I see her face lighten a little.
"Anyway, found any girls that you like?" she teases, looking at me curiously. I want to say no, that she's the only girl I'll ever like but how cheesy will that sound?! So instead I laugh, pretending to be embarrassed.
"None" I say, fidgeting a little in discomfort. She laughs and shoves my arm.
"Come on! Use my memories for good and go for the 'Wade Approach'" she says. I raise my eyebrow in confusion and she elaborates.
"Say how dreamy a girl's eyes are. How pretty she is. Girls love that shit" she says. I blush, finding this whole topic very awkward.
"It worked on me" she adds with a grin. I roll my eyes as I stare out in the distance.
"Yeah, from a guy you described as 'hot'. I'm not an expert but I don't think girls go for the pale skin and big nose combination" I say self-consciously. One giggles and pokes my nose.
"Holy shit! It keeps growing!" she teases me. I blush, feeling even more embarrassed and she sobers up.
"But seriously. It'll work. Girls fall in love with what they hear" she says. I sigh in exasperation.
"I can't actually believe we're having a conversation about girls. It's never going to happen for me" I say. She shrugs with a small smile on her face.
"Just as well. You're too good for them" she says. I blush in pride as we both stare off into the distance in silence.
Both dreading the moment I'll have to go.
Xxx
Saturnus
"An interesting name... almost like the planet"
Setrakus Ra, our Great Leader, our Beloved One, smiles down at me from his remarkable height. I bow down low, honoured to be in his presence.
"My parents had an interesting sense of humour, my Lord" I whisper, still bowing. I hear him laugh and then my shoulder is touched, making me beam in pride. I rise at his command, still much shorter than his impressive height.
"I've heard great things about you" Setrakus says, walking away and towards his window. We're in the great base of West Virginia, rebuilt once more by our human prisoners that we decided to put to good use.
That, and our Great Leader showed us the extent of his incredible powers.
"It is an honour to have been talked about to you, my Lord" I say, bowing again. He nods, looking out and across the distance, a frown on his face.
"I've heard that you have victories, parallel to none of the other Generals" he says, looking at me with his piercing intimidating gaze.
"The ultimate honour is to desecrate and destroy" I quote the Great Book, written by Ra himself. He nods and comes towards me.
"The Loric are in a training base in Washington. We need a stealthy and quick attack on them; we need to destroy them in one strike. Can you do that?"
I bow as an answer.
So, an attack is in the future! Also, some interesting discoveries coming up in the next couple of chapters, referring to the three items needed to kill Setrakus: The Keystone, Sword and Sacrifice. (Chapter 50 of return of Lorien).
Also, is there a special name for the ice legacy Ella got?
Please review!
