The Path Of Time

Chapter Eleven

"My mom told me once that when you're afraid of something, what you want more than anything else is to make it go away. You want your life back to the way it was before you found out there was something to be afraid of. You want to build a high wall and live your old life behind it. But nothing ever stays the same. It's not your old life at all, but your new life with a wall around it. Your choice is not about going back to the way things were. Your choice is about hiding, or about going right to the heart of the thing that scares you."

Allie Keys (Steven Spielberg's Taken)

The place was a war ground.

The two stopped in their tracks as they rounded the corner of the large city. He had only been here a few times, each memory being of a delicate and beautiful glass city. It was a place that never failed to amaze his eyes, no matter how many times he saw it. Yet now, standing at the edge of the path, he witnessed something that had been hiding deep within him. A secret fear locked away, not meant to rise to the surface.

The laboratory stood tall and proud as it had only a few days earlier. Only this time the atmosphere should have been a lot calmer, yet somehow it felt so tense. Looking at the deep cracks of broken stone in the ground, memories flooded through his mind of that fateful day. He looked up at the sky; now an endless blue of a tranquil day. How different it had been only a few days ago. He remembered looking up into this same sky, seeing the balls of fire blazing as they made their way crashing down into the earth. Crushing and burning his soldiers. The General almost felt that same tightening grip over him, keeping his body firmly in place and making him sit back and watch as hundreds were killed. Perhaps if he'd tried he could have pulled a few men to safety. Perhaps he could have fought back. How? He thought to himself. There was no enemy present that day. For they were hiding in the safety of a magic sealed room. The thought almost made him laugh in some sick manner. It didn't make people any safer having her locked away in that room. She still managed to hurt everyone. To torture people; not only physically.

He looked at the large gaping holes in the ground, his mind filling the holes with his fallen soldiers. Hearing their screams through blistering mouths, as they were burnt alive. What had become of the world? It had once been a safe world. A world where people no longer feared sorceresses or wars. Two years later it now appeared that they were right back where they started, only this time the enemies had changed. He sighed to himself taking in the scenery. There was no blood or bodies on the floor anymore. The terror of the day having all been washed away, probably by the rain, or perhaps the people of Esthar had cleaned it all up themselves. It was as if his soldiers were merely a smashed vase on the floor. Clear all the mess up and throw it away like it didn't matter. Just forget and move on.

"General?"

The voice from beside him stirred him from his reverie. He turned to see Eve. Beautiful, innocent little Eve, he thought to himself. All she ever wanted to do was help people. And here she was, making him leave the safety of his office and step back into the place that haunted him the most at this moment in time. It was as if she were checking all the cupboards, proving to him that there were no monsters anymore. You see, no such thing as monsters. It's all part of your imagination. Well sometimes it was easier to just leave the cupboards and not bother checking at all. This monster was too personal. Too close to him. With every soldier it's always easier to fight until it turns personal. Until something finally happens to someone close to you, and all you can do is blindly follow orders.

His eyes scanned over the path ahead of him, once more images playing in his mind. It was all in the past now, everything's cleared up. The paths will probably be fixed within the next few weeks. The mess cleared up and good as new. Just forget and move on. With that thought in mind he turned to face Eve, the first time he had properly looked at her since he first saw her at dawn when he had arranged transport to take them to Esthar. It was now late afternoon, and he watched her porcelain face as she patiently stood beside him. Her hair, usually left to fall loosely down her back, was now tied back and held firmly in place with a clip, giving her a more mature look. She looked more like a woman rather than the girl he had seen her as before. Still, he thought that she was foolish for all that she was doing.

"Lets go," he finally replied, and they began walking once more, making their way to the entrance of the laboratory.

As they neared the entrance of the building, he saw that four Estharian soldiers stood at the doorway. Each of them held a gun in their arms. Ready to attack if they needed to. He guessed that they would be more prepared than they were before. Possibly the soldiers where there for the Doctors sake as well as any intruders. From what happened the last time he stepped foot in this city, it seemed that no one was truly safe.

"Stop walking," one of the soldiers ordered, the tallest of the four. Even under the protective armour of his uniform the General could see that he was physically strong. It seemed that he didn't really need the gun he held in his hands, for he looked perfectly capable of hurting someone with his hands. He took a bold step forward towards the two, eyeing them suspiciously. His gaze hovered briefly over Eve, then his glance moved to the next person and stayed firmly fixed upon him. "General Caraway, if you're hear to retrieve the Sorceress you should know that we will use force."

Caraway shook his head, reaching into his jacket and pulled out a gun. "I mean you no harm," he said before handing the gun to the soldier. "I only wish for my companion Eve and I to visit my daughter."

The large soldier eyed him suspiciously a moment, his hands firmly placed around the gun the General had previously given him. Turning to his soldiers he signalled them to attention. "Search them," he ordered. Standing back he watched at the soldiers went about the search. It was evident he didn't trust them, yet Caraway thought that it was only logical having him been stood in this same spot a few days previously demanding they hand over the Sorceress. This was the kind of world a solider lived in, what they did while working and in their personal life were completely different. And somehow they managed to keep their feelings separate.

He watched as the large soldier pulled out a radio and spoke into it, all the time his eyes never leaving theirs. Eventually a muffled reply came through and the soldier gestured for them to follow him. A faint image of a bold solider helplessly weeping on the floor after having his foot trapped and eventually crushed through the thick door of the entranceway flooded the Generals mind. He thought he could still see the shallow pool of blood as he stepped through the door. No, he thought. It's just a memory. No point thinking about it right now.

The inside of the building was a sterile white, with long stretching corridors that all seemed to look exactly the same. He noticed how it was oddly quiet in such a place, the rooms in which he past bearing no voices or signs of life inside. Of course he realised that there were probably a lot of scientists and doctors inside the laboratory. It was one of the most successful of the time, due to being the main laboratory used by Doctor Odine when he had been in his element of researching the world. However, it was no longer to be as busy as he imagined it had once been. The sterile colours and silence save the footsteps of the three adults echoing off the walls giving the interior a ghostly feel to it. He followed after the soldier as they made their way down the corridors, all the time a growing knot building in the pit of his stomach. It suddenly dawned on him that he was going to see his daughter. The Sorceress who caused all the destruction outside.

The enemy.

The soldier stopped at a door, knocking on it before entering inside. Many people were inside, all Doctors and Scientists wearing white lab coats working at computers and studying graphs that were on the walls. A man came forward, thanking the solider for bringing them to him and telling him to return outside where the rest of the soldiers were. The General studied the man, realising that he recognised him from somewhere. Yes, he had been the Doctor outside on the day of the accident. Doctor Zain he had said his name was. Looking at him now, he still held that same aura he had on the day they were supposed to retrieve the Sorceress. He looked intelligent, but more than that. He looked like he actually cared about his work. He cared about Rinoa.

"I appreciate you coming today," Doctor Zain said, putting out his hand. He shook hands with the General, and then turned to Eve. "And who do we have here?" he asked, taking her hand in the same polite manor he had addressed the General.

"Firstly we must make an agreement to keep this meeting confidential," Caraway responded stepping forward and looking at the Doctor. "Our coming here today isn't known to the President or any of the Galbadian army. It's purely personal. I hope we can keep this visit confidential."

The doctor nodded his head, "Of course," he responded. "The Sorceress has got family and friends, we'd expect her to have some visitors every once in a while. And what goes on in this laboratory is of no business to anyone but the staff who work here. You're safe here General Caraway."

"Thank you," he responded with a curt nod. Hearing a small cough behind him, he turned to see Eve still standing silently, giving him an expectant look. He turned back to the Doctor. "This is Eve. She's a Sorceress," he explained. The look on the Doctors face suggested that he already knew who she was. "She wants to try and talk to Rinoa. Maybe try to see what's happened to her."

"Will you let me see her?" Eve asked, speaking up for the first time since they had approached the laboratory.

"Of course," the Doctor said with a small smile. "Why don't you turn around?"

It was those few moments that Caraway felt his professional demeanour crack. He never thought about what he would see behind him. Yet when he turned and saw the glass window exposing another room, he felt his heart stop. He didn't have to look for her; he already knew that she was in there. In the corner of his eye he saw a glimpse of her black raven hair. It was only a brief second he saw her before looking away again. It was then that the tears he didn't know he needed to cry began to form in his eyes. In all his years working for the Galbadian army he had dealt with many criminals. He hadn't known any of them personally. A lot of the time they were only names and faces to him. But this was the criminal now. His daughter. And if the President got his hands on her, she would be executed.

"I can't do this," he said almost in audibly.

Eve turned around to look at him, her face dropping as soon as she saw how weak he looked. It was something that she never thought she'd see from someone such as General Caraway. But she could see it clearly on his face. The hurt inside of him now visible. The fear.

"I promised you I'd take you as far as I could," he said, slightly more composed this time. "I'll wait outside for you."

She watched as the Doctor arranged for someone to escort him to a room he could wait in until Eve had finished. She admired the way the Doctor worked; he seemed to understand how people were without questioning it. Simply telling him where to go, but still allowing him access to his daughter if he wished to change his mind. She liked that about the Doctor.

Once Caraway had gone, Doctor Zain then turned to Eve. "I assume you know about everything that has happened to Rinoa?" He watched as she nodded her head, and continued, "From her being able to somehow use her powers we have had to raise the force of the anti-magic field in the room, as well as keep her sedated to encourage her powers lay dormant while she is in the room. This will also mean that it will have an effect on you. If you stay in there too long it might make you feel weak and dizzy. If at any point you start to feel ill, just say something and we'll get you out of there."

The Doctor led Eve to the doorway leading inside the small room in which Rinoa lay. "Inside the room there are cameras as well as microphones so we can see and hear everything that goes on. This means that if anything does go wrong, we'll be able to see and get there as soon as possible. You understand?"

"Yes," Eve said giving a small nod. She stayed quiet for a moment, looking through the window at the black haired girl. An excitement grew within her as she realised she was finally going to meet her. She was finally going to speak to another Sorceress. "Do you think she's possessed?" Eve asked the Doctor.

"It's hard to say," he responded, "We've been doing some tests, but none of the results give us any sure answers. It'll be good if someone could get her to speak."

"She hasn't spoken to anyone?" Eve questioned.

The Doctor shook his head, "Her boyfriend has been here everyday trying to talk to her, but she won't talk. She seems very disturbed at the moment." At his words he saw Eve's face drop slightly. "There's still chance for her to speak to someone. Are you ready to go inside?"

The red haired girl nodded her head. "I'm going to try my hardest to talk to her."

The Doctor walked up to a control panel next to the door typing in a code. "It'll be a great help to us if you can get her to speak," he said as the door hissed open.

As soon as she stepped into the room she felt the anti-magic field all around her. It pressed in on her tightly, making it feel hard to breath. She stood still for a moment, trying to get used to the feeling. It made her wonder just how a Sorceress could live feeling like this for so long, but then, Rinoa had no choice did she? The thought saddened Eve. Slowly she made her way across the room and around the bed to face the raven girl, all the time feeling a great pressure upon her head. It was as if someone were trying to crush her brain. The feeling was almost unbearable.

She crouched down slowly on the floor, and found that she was faced with a girl not much older than herself. Rinoa's eyes were open, but fixed looking distant like she were deep in thought. It could have been thought by the way she was lying on the bed that she was dead, if her eyes didn't blink every so often. Showing that there was still life within her.

"Hello Rinoa," Eve said, placing her hands on the bed near Rinoa. "You don't know me yet, but I know a lot about you. Deep down I've been wanting to meet you for a long time, because I know what you must be going through."

She watched as the young woman's expression didn't change. She wasn't even sure if she could hear her, she hadn't even responded when Eve had come down and sat beside her bed. Still, it was worth a try to talk to her. She knew that she could get Rinoa to at least listen to what she was going to say. "My name is Eve, Rinoa. I'm a Sorceress, just like you."

From her last words, there was a slight change in her expression. Previously her face had been blank, showing no signs of whether she could hear Eve or not. Now her face changed slightly, a deeper frown on her features as if she were thinking of how to answer a question.

"You know it's said that a Sorceress can identify another of her kind just by looking at them. I can tell by looking at you who you are, just as if you look at me you'll see who I am. It's a strange feeling. It's like there's some sort of connection, like a bond pulling me towards you. As if I've known you before, even though I've never met you."

She looked at the silent girl. "Look at me, Rinoa. See me for what I am. You're not alone, I promise." Lifting a hand, she placed it softly on Rinoa's cheek, stroking it gently. They stayed in silence for a minute; Eve watching over Rinoa as her face remained the same. Just as she was about to give up, she saw her eyes move slowly from where they had been staring into nothingness, to focus onto Eve.

It was that moment Sorceress and Sorceress locked eyes. The connection between them allowing them to see further into each other than any mortal could. It had been one thing to look at her and sense the Sorceress blood within her. But now, looking into Rinoa's eyes, it was as if she could see right into the very core of her being. She saw Rinoa for what she was. A Sorceress.

All through Eve's life people had known that there was something special about her. Whether they knew that she was a Sorceress or not, they always pushed the thoughts to the back of their minds. Not daring to admit the truth. And even if they said that they accepted her, they still didn't dare to really look at her. To see what was really there. When you allowed yourself to do that, just as Eve was doing to Rinoa now it opened up a completely different world to the person. She suddenly saw all of the fear within her. She felt the guilt that troubled her every minute of the day. And the pain of knowing what she had caused to so many people. Even further into Rinoa she saw the stain of another. It suddenly dawned on Eve that Rinoa had been possessed before. Anyone who had been possessed always carried a stain of the person who overtook their body. No matter how long ago it had happened, as she saw that Rinoa had once been possessed a few years earlier.

Eve was the first to break away from her desperate eyes as she saw something else within Rinoa. Something that she hadn't expected.

"You've felt this connection before, haven't you?" she watched as Rinoa's eyes fell back into their normal distant look. "Even though the Sorceress was corrupt, you felt that same connection. And you had to stand and watch as people destroyed her…"

"You were there, at the end of the Sorceress war two years ago, weren't you?" she said, it was more Eve thinking out loud than speaking to Rinoa. She could still feel her gaze. Her eyes seeming to open a flood of emotions and confessions, letting them wash all over Eve. This was the language of a Sorceress. "Even though you knew she was evil, deep down you felt like you could relate to her. And a part of you didn't want to hurt her."

She looked down to see a tear escape past Rinoa's now emotionless eyes and made its trail down her face. "It's okay to be scared, Rinoa." Lifting her hand, she began stroking her face once more, gently caressing the delicate locks of black hair that lay on her face.

"I always found that no matter if people accepted you for who you are or not, there's always that fear within. No matter how hard I try to hide my powers, I can feel them within me. I know what I'm capable of if I allowed myself to do so. No mortal knows that feeling. Its something that no matter how hard you try to push the thoughts away, it always remains there in the back of your mind.

"No one should ever have to carry that fear of themselves, but this is what a Sorceress bears with them everyday of their lives. I can assure you Rinoa, what you have done in the past few months every Sorceress would have had an urge to do at one point in their lives. That feeling of the power surging through your veins, it stays with every Sorceress, even in my dreams I've felt it. Until one day all you can do is release it."

She looked down at Rinoa, feeling a tight knot form in the back of her throat. For some reason, Eve found herself making confessions to this silent girl. Confessions she had never told another person. It was something that she hadn't even thought of in a long time, but here it was at the surface of her mind again, like it had suddenly been washed up on the shore. She just wanted her to understand. Needed her to know that she wasn't alone in this. She was far from alone in what she was feeling.

"When I was younger a group of young people in my town started to find out who I was. What I was. If they were in the middle of a conversation or playing a game, as soon as I came near them they would simply stop what they were doing and turn silent whilst watching me. Whenever they saw me they'd all stop and stare, like I was some sort of monster. It went on like this until one day when I was alone, walking to a shop around the corner from my home, I saw them staring at me like they usually did. Only this time they didn't remain stood like they usually did. They began to follow me. At first I didn't notice, but then they started to get closer, so I tried to run away from them. They all chased after me to a quiet area where no one was around, and began shouting insults at me. They stood in a circle around me, chanting 'Witch' and some other insults that I don't want to remember. It went on like this until some of the children started to pick stones off the floor and threw them at me. I felt like I was a wild animal."

"I snapped Rinoa," she whispered. "Just like you have done, I couldn't take much more. At thirteen years old I put six people my age in hospital. They were lucky to even survive. I… I'm so ashamed."

This time it was Eve's turn to sit quietly and stare into nothingness. The memories of that day still haunting her mind, tormenting her. It was memories like this that had driven her to what she was doing today. She had to remember that what she was doing was for the greater good. She needed people to understand her. Putting a hand on her arm, she took off a silver bracelet, looking at it for a moment.

"This is a gift between Sorceresses," she said, sliding the silver band over Rinoa's arm. She looked down at the raven girl a moment, taking in all of her features. She wanted to remember her face for the rest of her life. She wanted to remember the way it felt to look into the eyes of another of her kind. The room began to seem smaller as the pressure surrounding her body closed in on her. It dawned on her that she couldn't stay in this room much longer, not with the anti-magic field. It was too over powering. It made her feel ill.

Taking one last glance down at Rinoa, she stood from her position on the floor ready to leave the room. She had achieved all she wanted to for today. Just the simple act of being in a room with another of her kind was something that made her feel slightly better. Letting out a small sigh, she began to walk to the doorway leading out of the room.

A hand gripped tightly over Eve's arm, stopping her in her tracks. The grasp was firm, almost painful around her slender wrist, and she looked behind her slightly startled by the sudden contact. Looking down she was met with the desperate face of a young woman. Tears streaming down her face, as brown eyes stared up at her. Pleading. Almost begging.

"Help me…"

The voice was course, evidently having not spoken properly in so long. But the desperate words were enough to cause a flood of emotions through Eve as she stepped back and sat on the bed, watching Rinoa who was now sat up and breathing rapidly through her sudden outburst.

"I'm going to do what I can for you," Eve said with a small, knowing smile. She wrapped her arms around Rinoa in a tight embrace. "We'll help each other together. I promise."

She felt Rinoa's head shake against her shoulder as she began weeping uncontrollably. Eve placed a hand through her hair, stroking her as a mother might hold a child, and whispered words to sooth her. She had made a connection with Rinoa. Finally it felt like people were listening to her.

"I promise everything will be okay," she whispered.

Authors note: This was going to be the first section of a chapter… but somehow it's ended up being over 4500 words long. I have a LOT more that was supposed to go into this chapter, so to save it going on so long, I'll leave it until next chapter. Which will be written sometime within the next week most likely. I have a lot of time on my hands at the moment, so it's nice to finally be able to write again. Thank you so much to Luis and a-chinchila. Your reviews mean a lot to me.