Prince Of Darkness
Chapter 5
It was the middle of the night and Hilde was sitting upon the ledge of her balcony, her knees pulled up to her chest. Her gaze was turned upwards at the star filled sky as the moon cast its glow upon the valley. "This is all so strange to me," she said softly to her self. "This feeling inside me is so bazaar and I just can't comprehend it," she said, sighing as the breeze played with a few strands of her dark hair. "I'm still alone but why doesn't my heart agree with me? Is there something that I'm not meant to understand?" She paused as she looked out at the dark landscape as if waiting for it to reply to her unanswered questions. Silence ensued as she just sat there, lost in her own thoughts.
Duo was on his way back home from his little venture when he flew over Hilde's balcony on the way to his room. He paused in mid flight and looked down, there she was sitting on the ledge of the railing. He swooped down and landed on the stone floor of the balcony. Duo changed back into his human form and observed her for a moment. He could tell something was troubling her, just by the look on her face. "Hilde?" he said softly so not to scare her.
Without looking at him, she replied softly, "Oh, hi Duo."
"Look, I'm really sorry about earlier, I wasn't acting like myself," he said apologetically.
"Oh don't worry about it, things happen for reasons that we may never know. Besides, it's not you, I'm just a little confused right now," she said as she let out a deep sigh.
Duo walked over to her. "Do you want to talk about it?" he asked as he lend his hand to help her down. She nodded and took his hand, a feeling of warmth and peace flowing throughout both of their bodies.
"Can we stay out here?" she asked quietly.
"Sure," replied Duo in a soft voice.
Hilde sat down and leaned against the balcony railing, pulling her knees to her chest and folding her arms on top of them. Duo took a seat next to her, extending is legs in front of him on the ground. "What's bothering you Hilde?"
"How can you tell?" she asked coyly.
"Your face and actions tell me."
"Well, I've been having this weird feeling inside of me. I don't know what it is. I'm searching in my heart as to what it is, but I haven't found anything. I'm just lost Duo."
Duo sat there and listened to every word that played upon her lips. "Duo, can I ask you something?" she asked curiously.
"Yeah sure."
"You said that you had a curse bestowed on you. How did that happen?"
Duo paused for a second, he wasn't sure if he wanted to tell her. "A few years ago," he started, the pain evident in his voice, "I was a soldier in the great war, the one between earth and space. I swore to protect the innocent people against all of the maniacs in the world. I took many lives in the process, mostly other soldiers, but a few were not." His voice started to tremble and Hilde could see the hurt in his eyes. She gently placed her hand on his to try and soothe him. "I fought so hard for the life I love, I did not mean to hurt innocent people. I have been cursed with eternal life so I may live with the souls of the lives I took. Everyday they haunt me, even come for me in my dreams. I am waiting for my salvation to come and free my soul."
Hilde rested her head upon his shoulder and held his hand a little tighter. "I'm so sorry Duo, you didn't deserve this," Hilde said softly, trying to comfort the troubled warrior. Duo looked at her as she rested her head on him. 'Why isn't she afraid of me? Why does she care?' A small smile crept upon his lips as he rested his head against hers, both comforting each other's aching hearts.
"Duo, how come it feels like you are always trying to avoid me?" Hilde said in her soft voice.
Duo was caught off guard by this question and remained silent, looking up at the stars above. "I'm not doing it because I hate you Hilde. I'm afraid that the demons within me will surface and take over my body. I don't want to hurt you if that should happen."
"Then how come you are sitting with me now?"
"Ever since last night, for some reason, I feel more calm, more in control of my inner demons. It is really strange. Tonight I began to question those feelings, that is why I seemed so distant earlier."
Hilde paused for a moment and then a frail voice, she spoke up. "He is coming for me Duo, I just know it."
Duo could feel her starting to tremble. "He is going to hurt me again, even more so than before."
"He will not hurt you Hilde, I will make sure of that. No one deserves to be treated the way you have. I'm not going to let him take you," he said as he pulled the trembling girl closer to his body. Fear just coursed throughout her body, she was terribly afraid of that man. She looked up with pleading eyes and muttered, "Promise?"
"I promise."
Hilde's trembling ceased with those words and she melted against his chest. "Where is your family Hilde?" he whispered softly into her hair.
There was a momentary pause. "They died during the war. Killed by some soldiers who were ransacking our village. I was orphaned and taken to a shelter where I was sold into slavery only days later. That is when I met my master. He had bought me to help him work the land on his farm. I was only 10 at the time, still very young and naive. I did what I was told just so I could eat and have a roof over my head. When I got older, he tried to force himself on me, hurting me in anyway he could. He touched me, fondled me in places that where uncomfortable. I fought back, resisted, and that is when the lashings began. He had become very violent with me, lashing me for every mistake I made. My body was beaten and bloody, sometimes covered with bruises. I finally had enough of it and when the coast was clear, I made a run for it when he went out for the night. I have never ran so fast in my life. I was so relieved when I found this place."
Duo looked down at her as she spoke those words, tears flowing freely down her face. He felt his heart twist as she spoke of how he mistreated her, tried to take away her innocence. A look of determination filled Duo's eyes. "I promise he will never hurt you again Hilde, even if I have to kill him myself," he said in a low tone.
Hilde looked up at him, his eyes full of deep sorrow and anger. All of a sudden, clouds of red started forming in his eyes and he put his hands on his head, "Hilde, get inside now."
"What?"
"Now!"
Hilde got up and ran as quickly as she could into her room, shutting and locking the doors behind her. She hide behind the large tapestry and peered outside the window and looked at Duo. His hands where still on his head, his eyes closed as if he were in pain. He was fighting against his inner demons, trying his best to keep them at bay. "No, stop, go away!" he screamed as he tried to overcome the change occurring within him. He then fell to his knees, his face hidden in his hands. It was over. Hilde carefully opened the door and started to walk towards him. "Hilde, get away from me, please, just leave me alone," he said in a low tone of voice.
"But Duo..."
"Please Hilde! Go back inside, just go back inside," he said, his voice becoming faint.
Hilde didn't understand but turned around and went back inside her room, the doors slamming behind her. Duo winced at the noise, he had no choice, he didn't want to hurt her. He slowly stood up, his knees weak from the sudden loss of energy, and changed into a bat and flew off towards his room.
Duo landed on his balcony and walked inside his room. He threw his cape on the chair by his bed and slowly opened the door to his room. He walked down the hall and by doing so, passed by Hilde's room. The sound of faint sobs emerged from within causing him to feel weak again. He pressed his hand up against the door, wanting to come in and just hold her again. He closed his eyes and continued back down the hall, he did what he had to do in order for him to protect her from himself. He descended the stair case and made his way to the library where he found Horus, asleep on the back of his chair. Duo sat in his chair causing Horus to stir. Shocked, Horus said, "Sir, what are you doing up?"
"All I do is hurt people Horus, that's all I'm good at," he said sullenly.
"She saw me fighting for control over myself Horus. I yelled at her, telling her to get away from me."
"I see. Would you like me to go talk to her?" Horus asked.
"No, I will talk to her," he said firmly.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. When she told me about what her master had done to her, the anger and pain I felt triggered something inside me, causing me to lose control of myself."
"As you wish sir."
Duo got up and went back upstairs to her bedroom. He lightly rapped on the door and let himself in. "Hilde? Are you ok?" he whispered gently.
She rose up off of her bed and walked towards him, her face glistening with tears. She neared him, standing only mere inches away from his face. Suddenly, she collapsed into his arms, sobbing once again. "I was scared Duo. I knew what was happening to you and it scared me. I didn't want to see you in pain," she said between sobs.
He embraced her tightly, inhaling the perfume of her hair. "I'm ok Hilde, I won that battle. Please stop crying," he said into her hair.
She looked up at him, her eyes still wet with unshed tears. She smiled weakly and whispered, "I'm glad you won."
He then picked her up and cradled her against his chest. He carried her over to her bed and laid her down gently. He pulled the covers back over her and she shut her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Duo quietly left the room and made his way back over to his. He flopped down on his crimson sheets and stared up at the ceiling. 'Why does she care about me ?' he pondered again as he too drifted off to sleep.