Disclaimer: I don't own Haunting Ground.
Chap 4: I am not complete . . .
"M-Miss, F-Fiona . . ?" She sat up, her face stained with tears. She was in the Castle Suite again. She looked to see where the voice was coming from, and saw Daniella, but her dress was red and her hair was black now. She was standing there with a bowl of water and a handkerchief. Fiona realized that she had had a handkerchief on her forehead, before she had sat up. Then it registered, Daniella was supposed to be dead. She had killed her. What was the maid doing here? Without a scratch on her body? Fiona could not find her voice, so all she could do was move towards the wall, away from the maid. "S-Sorry, Miss Fiona . . . I am not D-Daniella. My n-name is Isabella. I am her clone, but, unlike her, I do not feel incomplete. I am . . . different. I have just enough Azoth, but I'm not completely human."
"How is that possible?"
"My genes, like Draven's," -she paused here, noticing Fiona's reaction to the name- "were mixed with others, I have cat-like qualities. I must thank you, you have freed Debilitas and myself. We are no longer at the mercy of a monster. And no one will ever have to suffer like we have."
"N-No problem, I guess . . ." She looked down at her hands, wondering about what it was that she had done. She wasn't sure how she had activated her strange . . . abilities.
"Isabella? Do you know what I am, exactly?"
"A-Actually, I do. Y-Your father, Ugo . . . he was the one who cloned Draven and myself. It was part of the plan, for when he ran away. He left us here, sure that, at some point, his child, you, would be brought back. He wanted to prevent it from happening, so he kept you away. Still, he felt he needed us." She stopped stuttering, gaining some confidence. "I suppose he was right, since Draven was the one who helped you. We were to be your safe keepers. But, Daniella was angry, locked me up, and ordered Debilitas to keep me locked. It wasn't until recently, about a day ago, when he found you, that Debilitas allowed me out, so I could take care of you."
"A day ago? I've been out for a day?"
"Yes."
"What happened to D-Draven's body?"
"He's been taken care of. You need not worry, Miss Fiona."
"What do I do now? I have no where to go, my parents are dead. I don't have any money . . ." She began to cry again, taking in the gravity of her current situation. She brought her knees to her body, resting her forehead on them. She felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder.
"You are welcome to stay at the castle. It is yours, after all. This can be your home. Debilitas and I will care for you. There are plenty of things here that you can exchange for money, if you are ever in need of something."
"Thank you, but I still don't know what I am."
"You have the blood of an extremely powerful alchemist running through your veins. For you, alchemy comes naturally. Instead of having to learn it, like most of us do, you just have to learn to control it. I can teach you."
"It's settled then. I will stay here. Thank you . . ." Isabella just gave her a reassuring nod, and left the room.
"I left some clothes for you." She pointed to the foot of the bed, before leaving the room. When the door closed, Fiona stood, wiping tears from her cheeks. She looked at her clothes, extremely similar to what she had been wearing when Draven had died. The only difference was the color. It was a dark navy. She also noticed that the collar covered more of her chest than the other one. She put it on, along with a pair of slippers that matched the dress. She got dressed, and tied her hair back.
She began to think about what would happen now. She would live in this huge castle, by herself, except for a maid and gardener. She hoped that Isabella would be more of a friend than a maid. She decided to take a walk, and properly explore the castle. She started with the garden. She went down the stairs, and went towards the tree where she had found Draven, in his dog form. Why hadn't he told her about it? And why had he turned back without telling her?
She tried to push the thoughts out, but was struggling. She moved on to the area where she had woken up the first time in the castle. That creepy room. She swore she wouldn't go back, so she didn't. She finished exploring the gardens, and went towards the main entrance. She went through the first floor, exploring the rooms and remembering some significant event that had happened in each one. She finished the first floor, and went on to the next, coming to the study. She went inside and decided to do a little research, trying to find a way to activate her power. She was looking through the books, when she came to one that was untitled. She took it and began to read it, realizing that it explained the source of power.
An alchemist performs best under pressure. A natural alchemist, which is extremely difficult to find, triggers his or her powers through emotion. The strongest are anger, hatred, joy, or love. Their power is released when their emotions get out of control, or when they have enough control to tap into the emotion. It takes extreme training to be in control, and a significant amount of meditation and patience.
Fiona continued reading, getting lost in the information. She was learning more than she had asked for, and did not want to stop. The book even had examples of an alchemist's power. She even read that it was possible to bring the dead back to life. She was about to read how to do it, some hope lighting up in her, when Isabella came in.
"Do not consider it, Miss Fiona. The dead cannot be brought back by people. Only gods have the power to do so. You cannot play god. It is what caused Belli to be who he was. Do NOT follow in his footsteps. You are better than that."
"But, I miss him."
"Yes, but he did what he had to. You cannot change the past. That is the first lesson of alchemy. You cannot play with the natural order." Fiona looked down at the book, wanting to try it. But she knew it was wrong, immoral.
"Sorry, I don't know what I was thinking."
"It's alright, I understand. Come with me, dinner is served." Fiona stood, placing the book on the desk beside her. She followed Isabella to the dining room, remembering what had happened when Daniella had made dinner. She was glad that Isabella was different. They walked in silence, sFiona still contemplating what she should do next. She knew she needed to learn control, but didn't know how to begin.
They reached the dining room and sat down.
"Isabella?"
"Yes?"
"I was wondering, if . . . Listen, I don't want you to be my maid, I would prefer to have a friend. I wouldn't feel so lonely, you know?"
"It's alright. I will be your friend, Miss Fiona."
"Please don't call me that, call me Fiona."
"Alright. You can call me Bella, then. That's what Draven called me. He was my brother, since Belli used similar human DNA when he made us . . ." A single tear ran down her cheek, and their was the slightest hint of pain in her voice. Fiona looked down at her plate, noticing that she had been served chicken, vegetables, and mashed potatoes. She began to eat, complementing Isabella on her cooking. They finished eating, and Isabella cleaned up. Fiona decided to clean the dishes, while Isabella cleaned the kitchen. They continued their work in a comfortable silence, until Isabella broke it.
"Fiona, would you like to start your lessons? We can practice in the garden." Fiona nodded, eager to get control of her abilities. They went to the garden, and Isabella began with her instructions. She noticed that Isabella had changed her hair, and had put it in a ponytail at the nape of her neck. Her clothes were also a lot more loose and relaxed. "Ok, first things first, you have to be relaxed. I know that your abilities react to emotion, so in order to get control, you have to be able to relax. It helps if you take deep breaths." Fiona did as she was told. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath, and felt the tension leave her muscles as she exhaled. "Now, that you're relaxed, we have to figure out which emotions bring out the most of your power. What did you feel when you used your power?"
"I was panicked (a/n: what a surprise!) and angry."
"Alright then, close your eyes and focus on what you fear the most, or what kind of situation would frighten you." She did as Isabella said, and concentrated on what had happened recently. She remembered the fear she felt as she was being chased, after having lost Draven, and a newfound fear. It was losing Isabella, her only friend. She felt the fear rise up in her and opened her eyes, which were glazed over with unshed tears. "Ok. Now concentrate on the fear, channel it into strength. What abilities do you know you have?"
"I m-made things move w-without barely t-touching them."
"Ok, concentrate. You see that hunk of stone? Put all your strength into moving it." Fiona closed her eyes, concentrated on her fear, and outstretched her hands. She heard something collide with a wall and opened her eyes to see. The piece of stone had been thrown against the wall, similar to how she had thrown Belli. "Very good. What other things have you done?"
"I shot ice out of my hands."
"Impressive, let's see if you can do it again. I suppose you were angry when this happened?"
"Yes."
"Then find that anger, channel it the same way you did with the fear, and concentrate on the ice." She did. She started to remember her parents' death, Draven's death, and the fact that she had been left without anyone, until she had become friends with Isabella. She thought about how Areoulis was to blame for everything. The anger boiled in her, itching to be released. She thought about the icy coldness of her heart after Draven was killed. She opened her eyes, feeling that she had built up enough anger, and felt the ice in her hands. At that moment, Isabella threw up a fireball. "Extinguish the fireballs before they hit the ground." She shot ice at it, and they canceled each other out. Isabella kept throwing them into the air, and Fiona got every one. After a few minutes of target practice, Isabella stopped, having decided to call it a night. "Alright, I think that's enough. We can practice some more tomorrow."
"Thank you."
"No problem." Isabella had a sad, contemplating look on her face.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'm just thinking . . ."
"About what?"
"What'll happen from now on, I suppose." She said it in a tone that suggested the end of the conversation. She turned and opened the door to go back inside, "If you need anything, my room is the extra room near Debilitas's cabin, the guest room. Good night." She went inside, leaving Fiona a bit confused. She filed the cryptic statement in the back of her mind, leaving it there for future analysis. She went back to the suite, content with the progress she had made.
As she walked back, she thought about what would happen to her, now that she lived in a castle. She would be completely secluded from the rest of the world. She felt that there was something missing, and knew exactly what it was. Draven. She wouldn't have minded as much if he was there to stay with her, keep her safe. She felt now that she understood Daniella. She felt the same as Daniella had. As she undid her bed to go to sleep, she whispered, "I am not complete . . ." and a single tear rolled down her neck, her having refused to let any others fall.
After Fiona was asleep . . .
"I feel terrible for her," Isabella said, as she sat at her table, staring blankly at the book before her. All she could think about was how unfair life could be, and how Fiona had to suffer so much. She was also thinking about the fact that Fiona had power over water, over time itself. Her heart had become so cold, ice cold, after losing Draven. She hoped that Fiona could recover from all her losses. Isabella thought she may have a chance of recovery, but after seeing the ice in her heart, she had lost a lot of hope.
The book in front of her explained how to interpret a person through their power. She had no idea that Fiona had been that depressed, or angry. If ice was her primary ability, Isabella would have to be careful. The fact that she had control over time was a different story entirely. She had an immense amount of power at her disposal. If she found out, she would go back and try to save Draven. Isabella knew it wouldn't work, but Fiona didn't and probably wouldn't listen, considering her delicate emotional state. All she could do was hope for the best, and pray to any deity that would listen. Pray that this ordeal could be done and over with so that Fiona, Debilitas, and herself could finally be free.
She closed her book and went to get ready to sleep. As she undid her bed, she began to speak.
"Draven . . . Why did you have to leave now? The danger's only begun. I'm not as strong as you are, I can't protect her as well as you did. What should I do?" She felt silly, speaking to herself like this, but she needed a way to vent, to try and figure out how to solve the dilemma. The danger ahead would put Fiona's life at risk even more than before, she wished it was Draven who was in her place. She undid her hair and laid down on the bed. Looking up at the ceiling, she began to get drowsy. Before she closed her eyes, she muttered, "I need you to come back, Fiona needs you . . ."
She fell asleep, but before losing consciousness completely, she heard a barely audible whisper, "I will come back, soon. Until then, please take care of her . . ."
Well, what do ya think? Please review. Thanx!