How It Happened

I meant to add this author's note before posting but it was last when I posted this chapter and it completely slipped my mind. Daemon is AquaTurquoise's character from some of her stories. I would read Pandemonium which introduces both the character and his wife. Also, Raquel belongs to Aqua, and any other characters besides Sara and Lauren, belong to their respective owners. Thanks for reading! :D

Sara relaxed in her field of flowers. The extensive array of colors, and every hue imaginable surrounded her. She gently stroked her hand across the many buds as if stroking a cat, with an invisible smile on her lips. She paused when a spot of something bright caught the corner of her eye. Looking, she realized it was a tiny glowing ball, floating in the flowers: A young soul. A new soul given its pristine brightness. Sara hadn't been dead for too long, but she had learned quickly that there were some rules in the afterlife.

For starters: New souls were pretty rare to find. Apparently, there was some overpopulation in the realms so new souls didn't appear too often. She didn't care to look into it, though apparently most of the NeverRealm was part of it. Again, not her problem. Unlike her former masters, she went out on her own terms and while she could go on to be reincarnated, it wasn't on her to-do list. Actually, she didn't want to be, even though Raquel insisted on it.

Upon her death, Sara wondered until she found herself meeting her former teammate. Raquel, who had not changed in the slightest, had sat near the pool where souls would be reincarnated. She had been a little surprised to see Sara at first.

"Are you here to be reincarnated?" She asked.

Sara shook her head, "No. I'm curious if you are though."

Raquel sighed, glancing at the pool forlorn, "I can't. I can't do it."

Sara sat down beside her, "Is it because of your abuse?"

At this, the former Tainted Ten member gasped at her, "Who told you? Was it Niko?" A brief look of horror and betrayal crossed her pretty face. Sara shook her head again, "No. You did." At Raquel's confusion, Sara continued, "I'm very good at picking up on people's habits and learning about them through their behaviors. While you and I didn't talk much, I wa able to pick apart your past very quickly: You never slept in a bed. You never let a man, with the exception of Nikolai, touch you. And if a man got close you looked very uncomfortable and even ready to fight or flee. Not to mention your night terrors..."

Raquel bit her lip, she hadn't realized that it was that obvious. Then again, Sara was very observant. So it made sense that she would pick up on it while the other members weren't paying attention.

"My adopted father," she spat with venom, "He was a monster. Un hombre asqueroso. Almost every night he violated me. I can't go through that again." She whimpered, squeezing her knees close to her chest, "I can't do it again, Sara."

"It won't happen again," Sara insisted gently, getting up she traced her finger along the surface of the water, her new light magic channeling through to turn the water white before it shifted to an image of a young couple. The man in it hadn't changed all that much since Sara last saw him. He was still the same almost-vampire she worked with. Sara briefly wondered if he would age like a human or if his vampire powers will still be him.

The image in the water moved slightly as Nikolai loving caresses his new wife's growing stomach, resting his ear on it to listen to their baby. "Niko is excited to see you again."

Raquel looked up at the name. When she saw the image she gasped, "How did you do that?"

"As I said, I've always been observant. I learned a few tricks in my short time." Withdrawing her finger she offered Raquel her hand, "Out of all of us, you trusted Nikolai the most. Surely you know he would never allow such a thing to happen to you in this new life." She smiled faintly at Raquel's hesitation, "I'll walk with you if you would like."

Raquel broke down in tears, "Si." She took Sara's hand and together they went into the pool. Sara had to resist the pull towards the center where souls filtered in to be reborn. There was no need to hold her breath or worry about getting wet. As souls, they were just floating in a new space. Neither let go of the other's hand until they were close enough.

Raquel looked to Sara, "Gracias, mi amiga. Are you sure you don't want to be reincarnated?"

Sara shook her head, "I don't think that's a good idea for me. I rather not."

She gave Sara a look, "You're insisting I go, but you won't? Isn't that a bit hypocritical?"

"Probably, but in the end, it's our choice. I am choosing to stay. You don't have to go if you don't want to, you know."

"Si, but it's my choice. I have a choice to decide what I want."

Sara nodded, "Then I guess this is goodbye. I wish you luck in this new life, Raquel."

Her friend smiled and shook her head, "No, no adios. Hasta luego, mi amiga."

Sara smiled faintly and repeated the words before releasing her hand, "Hasta luego, mi amiga." The tide pulled Raquel in, her friend waved before being engulfed by the loving light in the center. Feeling herself get pulled, Sara quickly left and returned to her field of flowers. Despite what Raquel said, she doubt that they'll see each other anytime soon. However, it was nice to know that Raquel cared enough to see her as a friend.

That had been a few months ago, and Sara remained in her field. Now she had company, a new soul wandering around far from the pool where it needed to be. Sara stood and carefully approached it. At the moment it was neither male nor female. Most souls weren't gender specific since they didn't have a physical form to occupy, but older souls, like Sara, typically chose the form of their most recent life. Sara knelt down and scooped the soul into her hand, it's energy was like warm water running through her palm, "What are you doing out here, little one?"

The soul didn't have a voice, but through some spiritual connections that Sara didn't fully understand yet, she learned that the soul had formed out of nowhere and wandered around. Apparently, someone dark saw and chased them to where Sara was. Now they were hiding from the dark entity.

Sara cradled it close, "It's alright, nothing is going to hurt you." She assured, keeping a watchful eye out for what had tried to harm the new soul. Having been infused with dark magic for most of her mortal life, Sara could easily pick up on it before it could try anything.

She glanced back down at the soul once more, it was as innocent as freshly fallen snow. The poor thing was beyond scared, it made Sara feel strangely protective. Then again, feeling protective in general was strange also. Emotions are strange. She could never quite place them for what they were.

Darkness from her far right made her turn on attention, cradling the soul to her chest, "Who are you?"

The entity groaned with annoyance, "Great, another NeverRealm member, how surprising. Why don't you hand over the new soul, it shouldn't exist."

The soul in her palms quivered, and Sara frowned, "You didn't answer my question."

"I don't have time to answer your questions, Sara." He smirked a little upon seeing the surprised look on her face, "Yes, I know who you are. Don't look so stunned. If you must know, I'm Daemno, one of the two rulers of the underworld. That soul you have was a mistake on my wife's part. We're trying not to make new souls, but my wife sometimes can't help it. Now don't make this harder on yourselves. They need to return."

The soul begged otherwise. They didn't want to leave. "They say no." Was Sara's response before she allowed the little one to float behind her. "I won't let you destroy them. They've done nothing wrong."

"It won't hurt," he huffed, "Honestly, this isn't supposed to be so complicated. I really wish Cedric and Sofia would stop this mass murder frenzy they've been going on."

"If you're Daemno, then maybe you shouldn't make so many, horrible souls." Sara countered, to which the entity laughed, "You think I am the only one who makes them? Listen, girl, that isn't how it works. I only put a little bit of darkness in them. Not enough to corrupt, but enough that given the right circumstances they can become dark. Like some of your friends. Now hurry it up. I don't have all eternity."

"And what if I don't?" Sara challenged, narrowing her eyes.

"Then I'll destroy you too."

"Is that your answer to everything?"

"No, but it's the only way to limit the population of souls in the underworld. We're swamped. We have more than enough to sort through, and I'm tired of it."

Sara shook her head, "I won't let you destroy this one. It's not their fault they exist."

Daemno looked at her quizzically, "You do know you don't have a chance to fight me. Why are you risking your entire being to protect something you just found."

That was a good question and Sara didn't have an answer, "I don't know."

Daemno sighed, rubbing its face in exasperation. The fact that souls or spirits didn't technically get tired only proved how demanding their job was. "You're really testing my patience, spirit. I'm normally impressed with someone who has the stupidity of standing against me. However, I'm not in a good mood. Either you hand them over or you die with them. Your choice.'

Sara continued to stand her ground, "I've already made my decision." Daemno raised his hand, darkness-like black smoke surrounding him. Sara prepared for the worst, but to her surprise, he dropped his hand. It was then Sara noticed a heavenly glow surrounding her and the soul behind her. It felt strangely familiar, though she couldn't connect the dots right away.

Daemno looked annoyed, "Why am I even surprised?" He gestured to the light magic surrounding her. "Looks like Princess Sofia and Jas left you a little souvenir." He rolled his eyes, "Great."

Sara was confused, what did Sofia and Jas have to do with this light magic? She replayed her interactions with them, however brief they had been. There were two main instances:

The first was when Jas had been brutally murdered. Princess Sofia had been devastated and Sara decided to act. Even though she had been promised by her 'boss' that they would end her, Sara had some doubts. The woman was so black-hearted she would be lucky to do the barest of light spells. Sofia on the other hand seemed to be made of light magic. It was in everything she was.

Sofia had used her light magic to give Sara the peace she desperately desired. It was warm and loving, but also bittersweet. Sara's dark magic that that been infused into her very being was washed away allowing her to finally die.

The second was with Jas when they hugged. Sara knew it was almost impossible for spirits to interact with the living, but somehow Jas' light magic came through and they could embrace in a loving hug. It was the first time anyone had shown her any semblance of affection. Just like with Sofia, the power of light magic was warm and inviting. It soothed her innermost self. Perhaps their light magic had stuck with her. Maybe instead of destroying her dark magic, it replaced it instead.

Sara wasn't sure, but she could safely say that magic was strange.

Daemno sighed, "Listen, Sara, if you're so passionate about keeping that soul safe, fine. I will respect that. However, at one point one or both of you will need to be born. We can't have any more souls wandering around aimlessly. It kind of defeats the purpose of having an afterlife. And since neither of you has unfinished business that ties you to the living world, you can't go to the ghost dimension. Make a decision soon or I will make it for you. As a courtesy to my wife, I won't destroy you, but I won't let you stand around and do nothing. You have three days to decide." He turned and faded away, returning to his realm.

It took Sara a moment to finally relax. She looked behind her where the soul still floated. It shot up and nuzzled her cheek. "You're welcome," Sara said a little uncomfortable with its affection. She reached to cradle it in her hands again and sat down in her field. "He's right you know. You need to live."

The soul shifted in her hand with worry.

"I understand you're afraid to live, but I assure you it's worth it." It was. Sara may not have had the greatest life before, but she could see that life was worth living. Unlike her, many could feel what was around them. They could feel the sun warm their skin, or the soft grass under their feet. And so much more to experience. Her connection with Jas, although faint, allowed her to gain a small glimpse into what it felt like to live and she knew that it was worth it.

The soul still wouldn't budge. Why was it scared, Sara couldn't tell. Perhaps because this was its first time it was worried about what kind of life awaited it. It was a roll of dice really. Sara could look into seeing the soul's parents, but that was it. The start of it all, but not the meat of it or the ending. There was never a true way to tell. It tended to get murky.

She sighed to herself, unsure of what to do next. She glanced off where Daemno had faded into oblivion, in the far distance the sun was slowly sinking into the horizon. "He gave us three days to make a decision. If not, then he will force one or both of us to go." She looked to the spirit in her hands, "It'll take us three days to get there. What do you think?"

The soul wasn't sure, but it seemed to trust her.

Rising to stand, Sara began the long journey to the pools where all souls wind up going to. If not then either they wander, or if they have unfinished business wind up in some ghostly dimension. Sara hadn't known much about the latter other than it was fairly hectic most days.

During the time Sara walked, she decided to fill the silence with some of her backstories. Who she was, where she came from, and what had happened. It felt nice to speak about these matters. Normally she wouldn't bother, but it seemed the spirit was interested in her experience. Sara didn't try to sugarcoat it, life was tough. However, she made sure to add that those she knew who survived lived good lives. They were happy, started families, made new friends, and were better people.

She spoke highly of Princess Sofia, the sorceress who freed her. It was nice to talk about it, kind of therapeutic.

On the third day, they had arrived at the multiple pools. There were a few skeletons laying out against the wall, their bones bleached white with no signs of skin or flesh in sight. "Ignore it, that's just a warning for the living." Anyone who touched the pools would find their souls sucked right from their bodies. Sara still covered the soul protectively in her hands.

A deep hum was heard from one of the pools. Out came Daemno, looking a little smug, "So you finally made your decision? Good, I hate having to follow through on my threats. " He gestured to one of the pools, "That will take you to be reborn. It can either be both or one, I don't care which."

"You seem annoyed with us," Sara said simply, moving towards the pool he had motioned.

Daemno sighed, "It's going to take us a while to sort everything out. These pools can only take so much at a time. With Cedric and Sofia sending the entire NeverRealm in, it really had an effect on our work. Some of those people weren't technically evil, just raised by it. So now we have to sort them out too. As you can guess, good and evil isn't as clear cut as most would love to believe."

"I believe it," Sara said, "I was one of those people."

"You were," he nodded, "My wife really likes you though, hence why I didn't destroy you back there."

Sara raised her eyebrow at him, "I thought it was because of my light magic."

Daemno laughed, "Light magic and dark magic are contrasts yes. And sure, typically light does defeat darkness and all that stuff. However, if I wanted to destroy you, I would. It wouldn't have mattered if you were made of completely light magic or not. However, as I said, my wife likes you. She has been watching for a while. I know she would be furious with me for destroying you and the new soul she created."

"If I may ask, but why did your wife create a new soul if you're already overpopulated?"

Daemno rolled his eyes, "I wish I knew. I was told that it was 'spur of the moment.'" He chuckled darkly, "We had gotten into a minor argument a few months ago, I think she just wanted to spite me a little. Despite us being married for so long, we still enjoy getting on each other's nerves." Then he waved for her to go, "Hurry up before I lose my patience."

Sara stepped closer to the pool and went to put the soul down. However, the soul shot up back to her, refusing to leave. "It's time for you to go." She insisted, "You don't need to be afraid, I promise, you'll be fine."

The soul didn't want to go. And through the spiritual link they shared, Sara finally realized why. They didn't want to go alone. Sara stared in shock, "Y-You want me to go with you?"

They did. They wanted her to go with them and live a life together.

Sara shook her head, "I can't. I can't go with you. I'm not ready." Now she was almost repeating Raquel's exact words. How silly was she to think she was strong enough to return? No wonder Raquel was so scared. Was this what fear felt like? How can anyone manage that? Would she be able to feel at all?

The soul grew warmer trying to encourage her. Perhaps, if they went together it wouldn't so bad? Sara considered it for a moment, before reaching in and tracing her finger along the surface of the water. Just like with Raquel, it glowed before showing the images of their soon-to-be family. The image showed two familiar faces: Jas and Muscles. Somehow they would end up being their parents. It felt strangely comforting. Sara smiled and looked to the soul, "You won't have anything to fear. I promise. Those two down there are good men. They'll take care of you."

Still, the soul wanted her to go. Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad. Sara hadn't much chance to live, and this soul was giving her a chance too. They could experience new life together.

Looking at the image of Jas and Muscles, Sara's decision was made. She looked back at Daemno who gave them a nod. Nodding back, Sara stepped into the pool, feeling its strong pull towards the center light. She held onto the soul, even as her form shrank down and compacted into an equally bright ball of light. Together they drifted to the center. Ready to start a life together.