21- Break Free
Axel had never liked children. Even when he was a child himself, he hadn't wanted them. He was above them, always.
Children were pests. They were spoiled and demanding. Their strong-willed emotions irked his nerves.
He would never take in a child, at least, that's what he thought. That was, until Pan. Until he senses the magic nestling inside of her. Then he knew he had to have her.
Pan had been a sweet child at first. She smiled at him and trusted him wholeheartedly. Whatever he told her was law in her eyes, as it should be.
Axel wasn't sure what had caused her memories to come back. He had been so sure that his memory-blocking spell had been perfect. He assumed it was when her Saiyan genes ran wild and saved her from the pool. He would have saved her, of course. She was valuable to him, and he couldn't lose her. But the savage side of her came out then, and ever since, she had become a different person.
For the last year, Pan's attitude had seemed to grow worse. She met him with resistance no matter what he did. She hardly left her room, and whenever she did, she stayed wherever he wasn't. For so long, he had to stop her from trying to escape, and now that she refused to, he felt suffocated.
Axel had put up with it, though. He had given her space, assuming that she was a typical teenager. He knew that when the time came, she would realize that everything he had done, he had done for them.
Movement from the corner of his eyes caught Axel's attention, and he turned to look out the window. Pan was down below, walking across the garden on a rare trip outside of her room. Her dark hair was long and shiny, and Axel's hands twitched to pet it. His eyes roamed over her slowly. She had turned sixteen not too long ago, and she had grown into her body over the last year. Her hips curved, and her chest bloomed.
Axel licked his bottom lip as he watched her move across the garden. Pan stopped suddenly and looked up as if sensing his gaze. Her dark eyes glared at him. She looked so fierce that he couldn't help but smirk. She could try to get away from him, but he'd never let her go far.
"Well, look at this," Axel's voice was as smooth as silk as Pan walked into the dining room. "You've willing come into the same room as me."
Pan pursed her lips to stop herself from screaming what she wanted to - Monster! Murderer!
She knew better than to say those things. At the moment, Axel was still stronger than her. Pan was working hard in changing that. In the meantime, she had a plan of her own. She would pretend to trust him again. She would win his favor once again, and then when the time was right, she would destroy him.
"Good morning," Pan said as she sat down next to him at the table.
Axel's eyebrows twitched, and Pan could tell that he was pleased. "Good morning," he said.
Pan forced herself to have civil conversations with him throughout breakfast. She could do it. It was just an act. She needed to think of herself as some sort of actress.
Axel let out a small laugh once the meal was over and smiled at Pan. "I've heard that raising teenagers was tough, but you've really caused me some grey hairs over the last few years, Precious," he said.
Axel's pet name for Pan sent her skin crawling in discomfort. She forced a smile on her face and ignored the bitter taste in her mouth as she spoke. "I'm sorry for how I've been acting the last few years. It really wasn't fair to cause you so many problems after everything you've done for me. I am very grateful, and I'll pay you back someday." Oh, she'd pay him back for sure.
"You sound grown-up," Axel commented quietly.
"Well, I am almost seventeen," she stated factly. She had one more year, and then she'd fight her way out of this prison, one way or another.
"Yes," Axel nodded slowly. He stood up suddenly, a bright grin spreading across his face. "Come with me," he held out his hand to her. "I have something for you."
Pan glanced at him curiously, but his grin never wavered. She swallowed down her vile as she stood up and held onto his arm. Axel led them out of the kitchen and down the hallways towards one of his spare bedrooms.
"This was something I've been waiting to give you for years now," he said, excitement clear in his voice. "I knew I had to wait for the perfect timing, and Precious, I can't help but feel as if that timing is now."
Axel opened up a door, and Pan glanced around in confusion. It was mostly empty, and one of the walls was nothing but a huge mirror. In front of the mirror wall stood a mannequin that was covered up. Axel sent Pan a smile and patted her hand before he let go of her hand and walked over. He slowly uncovered the dummy, and Pan's eyes widened.
It was a dress. Beautiful and white. Diamonds speckled across the corset. The skirt was ballooned out, reminding Pan of a Princess dress.
"Come, come, look," Axel motioned her closer.
Pan felt a sense of dread rising in her as she walked up slowly. She was so close to the dress that her reflection on the mirror wall made it look as if she was wearing it. She took a quick step away from it, her stomach feeling queasy.
"Pan? What's wrong?" Axel asked with a frown as he stepped down beside her. "Don't you like the dress?"
Pan swallowed hard. Her voice was shaking, "it looks like a wedding dress."
"Oh, Precious," Axel ran his hand down Pan's arm slowly and she shuddered. "Did you just say in the dining room that you wanted to pay me back?"
"My payback will be you marrying me off?" She asked in a whisper.
Axel chuckled, deep in his throat. His hands circled her wrist, his grip tight. "Oh no, I'm not giving you away to anyone."
Pan's eyes widened as realization kicked in. She gasped as she turned to face him. "You?" She could barely find her voice. "You want me to marry you?" Her world was spinning. She was going to be sick!
Axel looked unfazed. In fact, he was smiling. "Of course I do, Precious. Think about it; we're the only two left in our clan-"
"We're related!" Pan nearly shrieked.
"Only a little," Axel said. "Not by enough that counts."
Pan let out a yell and tried to yank her arm away from him, but Axel's grip was right around her.
"Now, Pan, stop being stubborn!" He said. "I thought you were growing up. It's time to realize that sometimes sacrifices must be made in order to keep the balance of things. All these years, I've taken you in and raised you in your parent's stead since they couldn't. I've cared for you, loved you. This is just a small price to pay for it."
Something inside Pan snapped, and she grew hot. She had to pay the price for him killing her parents and family?
She snarled at him as she ripped her arm free of his grasp. "I would rather die," she spat.
Axel's eyes widened. "What was that?" He asked quietly.
"I said," Pan squared her shoulders, "that I would rather die! I would rather die than marry you! I would rather die than spend one more day inside this damn mansion! I would rather die than spend one more moment with the man that murdered my family!" She screeched with a pant.
Axel was looking at her with a stern glare, he opened his mouth to speak, but Pan beat him.
"I know it was you!" She screamed. "I remember everything! You took everything from me, and you honestly expect me to marry you? To love you? I HATE YOU!" She screeched.
Pan turned on her heels and bolted out the door. Adrenaline was pulsing through her veins. She didn't care what wards were up. She'd claw her way through them. She was escaping today!
Pan had just taken a step to fly down the stairs when something twisted into her hair and pulled her back. She hissed out in pain as she was turned, and Axel was smirking at her, his hand tangled into her hair.
"You, Precious, are getting on my nerves today," he tightened his grip on her hair, and Pan gritted her teeth together. She refused to show him that he hurt her. "So what if I killed your family," his voice was like a hiss. "I'd do it again if I had to. They were keeping us apart, and can't you see how wrong that was? You and I, what we could create, would be nothing like this world has ever seen. We can rule it, together-"
Pan spat on him. Her chest was heaving as she glare fiercely. "I'd rather die," she hissed.
Axel let out a sigh, "so be it." He raised his hand, and Pan clenched her teeth tightly. His slap stung of wicked magic, and darkness surrounded her.
Pan woke up coughing. Her mind was pounding in agony. Her body was shaking, and it took several minutes for her to calm down and catch her breath. Memories flooded her mind in blinding pain. She clutched her head, and she hissed between her teeth. She could feel it. Axel had tried to erase her memories again, but he hadn't succeeded this time.
It took several minutes for Pan's body to stop shaking. She opened her eyes and took in her dim room. Axel must have knocked her out, attempted to erase her memories, and then placed her in her room. She wondered what lie he would come up with this time to tell or what he would do once he saw that she hadn't forgotten anything.
Pan sat up and let out a shaky breath. Her body was sore, and her head was still throbbing. Just how much magic had Axel used on her? She must have unconsciously fought him off, and she was proud of that.
Slowly, Pan slipped off her bed and turned on her lamps. Her room was just the same as it always was. It would be a matter of time before Axel came to check up on her, and then, he'd either force her to marry him or continue in trying to wipe her memories. Pan let out a breath. She refused to marry him or forget her family again.
Pan rushed into her closet and threw all of her shoes to the other side as she uncovered her saber. She had been hiding it in her room for the last year, and it wasn't like Axel noticed it missing. She fasted the belt that connected to its sheath around her waist. Her saber was cold and heavy in her palms, and she stared at the sharp blade.
She couldn't continue living there, but she knew Axel would never let her leave. Wards guarded the property, and Pan wasn't powerful enough to take them down. She knew she wasn't. She'd rather die than be stuck there with him, though.
Pan's breath caught in her throat. It could be over soon. She could be free and be with her family again. Her hand tightened around the grip of the saber so tightly that she was shaking and tilted it until the edge of the blade kissed the skin of her chest.
Pan could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks. It'll be over soon. All she had to do was shove it-
The knob on the door began to rattle, and Pan gasped. Had Axel came already? She quickly held out her saber, ready to strike whoever entered.
To Pan's shock, it wasn't Axel - it was a young woman! She had dark hair that fell over her shoulders. She was just as shocked as Pan was, her dark eyes wide as she let out a small gasp and threw up her hands to shield herself.
"Who - who are you?" Pan asked, her voice sounding very far away.
That woman, she looked like - she looked like her! Pan's eyes widened. Could this woman be her from the future? Was she there to save Pan?
The castle started to shake before the woman could answer, and Pan gasped. She could sense Axel's magic - had he sensed the other Pan?!
"No," she whispered as she put her saber in its sheath. She grabbed the Other Pan's hand and began to drag her down the stairs. "We have to get out of here! He can't find you! If he does -" she didn't even want to think of what might happen. The thought caused her body to shudder.
"Wait!" The Other Pan yelled. "He can't hurt us! It's just a dream!"
Pan turned to face her, her eye furrowed together in disbelief. Was she crazy?! This was no dream! Maybe she wasn't there to save her after all. "What are you talking about?" She asked.
"This - this is nothing but a nightmare," Other Pan nodded sternly. "And I refuse to let him -"
"PAN!" Axel's voice shrieked so loudly that Pan let go of the woman's hand and clutched her ears. Both of them were wincing.
"It's a nightmare, alright," Pan hissed as she removed her hands from her ears. "One I've been living for the last four years!"
Pan retook the woman's hand and dragged her down the stairs. The mansion was shaking. They neared the patio doors to the backyard, and Pan flung out her arm, using what little magic she had to rip them off the hinges.
The girls stumbled down the steps, and Pan ran towards the garden path and the maze. She didn't know her way through it, but neither did Axel. It would give them some time to flee.
"It's just a dream," the Other Pan muttered as she clutched Pan's hand. Pan could feel her frantic heart, which was a lot like her own, as they ran.
Pan could feel Axel too. He was chasing them, not far at all. He wouldn't be happy with her. She feared that he would try to erase her memory again, or worse -
Around them, the garden was reacting to their unstable emotions and magic. The flowers were wilting. The trees were dropping and sagging. Pan was panting, her chest burning and tightening, but she focused her eyes ahead. They had to get out of there somehow! The thought of Axel catching them made her whimper.
"PAN!" Axel roared, and both Pans jumped. "COME BACK TO ME!" There was a mocking tone to his voice, and Pan swallowed back her sob.
They turned a corner, and Pan screamed in terror. It was a dead-end! She looked at it in shock as tears rolled down her eyes. A silent sob escaped her lips, making her shoulder. She should have just shoved the saber through her heart earlier - why did she hesitate?
"It's just a dream," the Other Pan's voice shook. She closed her eyes and let out a deep breath. "It's just a dream," she said again, her voice growing firmer. She wiggled her hand free of Pan's grasp and placed her hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me," she said carefully. "This is a dream."
"You said that already!" Pan shrieked, near hysterics. "Can't you say anything else?! If this is a dream, then I want to wake up!" She screamed. She wanted out of this nightmare! She wanted out now!
"Okay," the Other Pan nodded. "I'll send you somewhere he can't find you," she promised.
Before Pan could react, she was shoved backward roughly. She screamed as she fell back, expecting to land on the hard stroke of the maze. Instead, something pulled at the back of her gut and yanked her. She screamed, her body feeling as if it were going impossibly fast. Blurs of colors swarmed her vision, her breath was caught in her throat, and her limps were reaching out to nothingness.
Where was she going? What had happened? Had the Other Pan really saved her?
Pan choked as she forced her head back against the pull. It didn't matter where she ended up. She would be free.