Chapter 10-
Fate
I ducked just as a vase of roses came flying towards my head. It smashed against the wall behind me, shattering into pieces and tossing flowers around the room. Renee was not going to be happy; she really liked that vase. I could repair it with magic, but right now that wasn't such a good idea. I was going through another episode, and my magic was seriously fluctuating.
It was Saturday morning, only thirteen hours after Renee and Charlie had left to find Zephyr. I wasn't doing well. I hadn't slept at all last night; my brain just wouldn't shut down and allow me to rest. I had tossed and turned until eventually I'd given up on sleep. Instead I had completed all my homework for school and cleaned the entire house the human way. It didn't do anything to calm my mind, which was unusual.
Small magical accidents began to occur as I cleaned, but as the hours wore on, the small magical accidents got bigger. Now, my magic was out of control. In the last few hours I had smashed five cups, cracked a window, broken the coffee table, put a flaming whole in the moving photo of me on the first day of school, and now I had caused a very expensive vase to fly at my head before smashing into a million pieces. Nothing seemed to be calming me down. I had even tried cooking, but I quickly gave up on that when the oven came to life of its own accord.
At first I thought it was my anxiety that was causing all this accidental magic, but something in my head told me that I was wrong. My anxiety probably wasn't helping the situation, but it wasn't the cause of it. This was beyond infuriating.
I snapped back into reality when I smelled something burning. My eyes shot around the room looking for the source of the smell. After a few seconds, my gaze locked on the smoke rising from the 52-inch flat screen TV.
Please tell me you're joking.
The television began shooting out electrical sparks. Seconds later, the sparks caught on the curtains. Naturally, the curtains caught alight.
"Shit!" I screeched, running into the kitchen a returning with a pan full of water. Once I had extinguished the fire on the curtains, I turned my attention back to the television. It seemed to have stopped exploding. Just to be safe, I removed the plug for the socket.
Great, now I had destroyed both of my parents' most prized possessions. I sighed, thinking about the explaining I was going to have to do. That vase had been in my mother's family for years.
I needed to get out of this house before I set the whole thing alight. This was getting stupid. There had to be something I could do to gain some control over my powers. I felt helpless and I didn't like that.
I pulled on my boots, unsure of where I was going, and practically ran out the door.
The sun was shining, but it was still cold. I ignored my car, walking across the yard and into the forest. My mind was still in overdrive, so I didn't pay attention to where I was stumbling. I could feel the magic pulsing through my veins at an alarming rate, causing me to shake uncontrollably. I was seriously starting to lose it; I could feel my control slipping away.
It's normal for all witches and wizards to experience out-of-control magic when our powers start to grow. However, that happens when we're ten years old.
When we are ten we experience a massive surge of magic. We call this the Spiking. After the Spike, our powers are supposed to grow in moderation every year. The yearly growth is so subtle that we barely notice it.
What I was currently experiencing was unnatural. It felt like I was going through another, very strong Spike. This wasn't unheard of, but it's rare and never ends well. Every known witch that went through a second spike ended up turning evil. They become vicious, crazy with power and extremely dangerous.
I felt seriously hot, like I was running a fever. I removed my jacket, letting it fall to the floor of the forest. I didn't bother to retrieve it, I just kept ploughing forward. The removal of my jacket seemed to do very little for my temperature. I removed my long sleeve jumper as a second attempt. A stinging sensation erupted from my arm. Only then did I become aware that I had scratched off a few layers of my skin. I was so hot I had started scratching.
I continued to stagger blindly through the thick trees. Of course being me, I stumbled on wet moss and smacked my head into a tree. The force of the hit caused me to rebound off the tree trunk and land on the ground.
I lay on the wet, cold floor of the forest trying to catch my breath. It wasn't working. If anything my breathing increased, my head pounded and my vision blurred. I lifted my hand to my head, and when I removed it, it was covered in my warm, sticky blood. Great, I had a massive cut in my head. Above me, the clouds turned unnaturally black. I forced myself off the ground, wincing in pain. I leaned against a tree, trying to take in my surroundings. I was surrounded by trees and moss. I had no idea where I was. I was in no way fit enough to dissipate; who knew what would happen if I tried. My only choice was to keep walking. I pushed on through the forest, my head pounding, my vision swimming, and my magic pulsing uncontrollably.
When I finally pushed my way through the trees, I emerged in the same field where I met the Cullen's. I was breathing heavily, shaking and bleeding from my fall. I stumbled into the open field before collapsing onto my knees in the middle.
The pain increased. It pulsed through me endlessly, bringing another wave of agony with every heartbeat. Was I dying? I had no idea what was going on. Tears ran from my eyes as I desperately tried to calm down. It didn't work. I felt a mass of pressure push down on me, increasing my pain.
I watched as the grass under my hands turned black at the same time the black clouds above released their contents. The rain fell heavily from the sky, slamming onto the ground and hammering onto me. I didn't even acknowledge it.
The most intense pain yet shot through my body, forcing me to the floor. I screamed with as much volume as I could muster as I felt myself lose my last ounce of control. I felt my eyes shift colour, but I had a feeling they weren't red.
As my last grain of humanity faded, lightning struck the ground around me, the wind turned to gale force speeds, and the rain seemed to increase.
As the weather turned even more dangerous, all the pain that had been swimming around my body disappeared. I stood from the floor swiftly, quickly realising that I was disconnected from my body. I was trapped in my mind, watching everything that was going on around me, but I wasn't the one in control. I was caged in with no command over my actions. My own body was acting against my will. I was terrified of the sensation.
Some trees were snapped in half and others were on fire. There was complete destruction surrounding me. I was causing it, and I couldn't stop. I watched in desperation as my hand rose of its own accord and shot a fire ball at a nearby tree.
"Bella!" I knew that voice. Please no! I wanted to beg and scream for him to run. "Bella, stop!"
I felt myself turn very slowly to face who had called out for me. As it turns out, the whole of the Cullen family was watching my breakdown. They all gasped and took a step back as they took in my appearance. I must look really bad.
"Bella?" Alice said, her voice shaking with what I assume was fear. She tried to take a step forward but Jasper grabbed her arms and pulled her behind him. He crouched, ready to attack. Emmet followed suit, sinking into a defensive crouch.
"What is she doing?" Esme asked with a voice full of fear and anxiety.
"I don't know," Carlisle replied his face openly displaying his shock and concern. "Stay back, everyone."
I tilted my head as I took in each of them, probably deciding on who I was going to kill first. Finally, my eyes locked on Edward. Unlike the others, he wasn't looking at me with fear. All I could see in his eyes was deep concern. He was searching my eyes for something. He must have found what he was looking for, because his expression went from concerned to determined.
"Edward! No!" Alice's high pitched scream echoed around the field. Before anyone could stop him, Edward started running towards me. Emmett tried to run after him but was stopped by Rosalie.
What is he doing? Does he have a death wish? I raised my hand in his direction aiming directly for the oncoming vampire.
I shot a fireball directly at his head. He dodged it and it continued on its path towards the Cullen's. They jumped out of its course just in time. It hit the tree behind them, setting it alight.
Anger made me more determined. Lightning struck the earth continuously, causing it to crack and shatter as if it was made of glass. I gasped as one particular bolt missed Edward's foot by inches. He sensed it to and began to step more carefully.
No! Please don't hurt him, I pleaded, trying to stop my other self from harming Edward.
Even though he was running towards me, his eyes seemed to be dazed as if he was focussing on something else. The closer he got to me, the angrier I felt, and the more she tried to stop him with me trying to stop her.
I continued to shoot all sorts of spells and hexes at Edward, some of which I had never seen before. All the while, I was screaming for his safety. He ducked, dived and swerved at all angles. He was also really fast. I had never seen a vampire so fast before. However, now was not the time to be admiring him.
Somehow, Edward had managed to dodge all my attacks and before I knew it he was standing in front of me with a firm grip on my arms. I was grateful that I hadn't wounded him but all I wanted him to do right now was to run. I found myself begging and pleading but nothing broke through the barrier.
"You didn't think it was going to be that easy, did you?" my voice echoed around the field. However, it didn't sound like me, the voice that came from my mouth sounded distant and evil. Shock registered on Edward's face at the sound of it.
I felt myself smirk evilly before surrounding both of us in a circular wall of fire. Fear flashed through his eyes as the fire blazed around us. I could hear the screams of his family on the other side of the wall.
"Bella," he shook me firmly. "I know you can hear me."
Yes, I can hear you. Please run! Please, Edward!
"Bella, I'm begging you, please stop." He sounded so desperate and scared. His eyes were still locked on mine. He leaned into me so his mouth was just above my ear. He whispered so gently in my ear that I almost thought I had heard wrong.
"Love, please stop." His words shocked me. Wait, did he just call me what I thought he called me?
His words and desperation were enough to shock me and bring back some form of conscious thought. I had to stop this. I had to stop, or I would end up killing him. I wasn't going to hurt him. I refused to hurt him.
Desperate and shaken, I clawed at the pressure holding me down. It was resistant, and it forced me further away from the surface as I pushed against it. I couldn't give up though, my giving up would mean Edward would die. As the circle of fire got smaller and closer to me and Edward, I tried a different method. I slammed against the barrier that kept me from controlling my body with as much force as I could. I was not going to hurt him, I wouldn't.
I felt myself smirk, and before I knew what was happening I smelled burning fabric. I was running out of time. I slammed against the barrier with more force than I thought I had. The barrier shook slightly. I continued to bang against it until my hands felt raw. After the fifth ram against my restraints, Edward spoke to me.
"Bella, please," Edward whispered gently before closing his eyes and pulling me closer to him. He was giving up. He was accepting that he was going to die and that I was going to be the one that killed him. Rage rose within me, so strong that it took me by surprise.
His surrender was the last straw. I smashed myself into the barrier with as much force as I could muster. Finally the barrier gave way and I pushed myself to the surface.
I gasped as if coming up from a lengthy stay under water. As Edward came into focus, the wall of fire dropped the rain, wind, and the lightening all stopped instantly. Slowly I felt myself gaining control over my body. The feeling came back into my arms and legs. My breathing was erratic and my head had started spinning. As the control over body returned so did the pain, it ripped through my body like fire.
The pain was so intense that I lost my hold on reality. All my remaining energy drained from my body. I felt myself sway before collapsing forward. Luckily, Edward was there to catch me. His strong but gentle arms wrapped around me, pulling me close to his chest.
"Bella?" his voice was hysterical, but I couldn't find the energy to reply. I felt him bend gently before pulling me into his arms bridal style.
"Edward," I managed to say, before everything went black.
Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters or locations from the series.
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This is the start of something big?
The next chapter...I will try something I have never done before.
xxx Red as a Rose xxx
Recommended Story: You Owe Me by I'm a Muppet of a girl (Mortal instruments archive). I don't normally read stories from this archive. However, I found this story just as the author was starting it. I was hooked from the start and followed her all the way to the end. The author is amazing at building suspense.