-Karen-“She exists! I know she does because she started out walled up just like this and I had to bust my ass to break those damn walls down. And in the blink of an eye, that wonderful woman that I fell so hard for vanished right before my eyes.” He countered, pulling me back and cupping my face. I miss that warmth. But I can’t! I don’t belong here. “I’m trying to find her from a dream I had a long while ago.” He whispered in my ear. “It was the hardest thing to watch her cry thinking she was in a dream when she could easily reach out and touch my hands or cling to me so I could wrap her up in my arms.” He kissed my cheek and nuzzled my neck. No! Stop this insanity! I pulled away from as best I could as soon as he nuzzled my neck. He pulled me back to him just as quickly. “I promised her that I would find her if it were a dream and I would die looking for her if I had too. Here I am searching for her. Please help me find her.” He whispered in my ear. Stop talking like that!“You can’
-Karen-“You had me doubting there for a moment! You’re the most amazing but stubborn woman I’ve ever met.” He said sweeping me off my feet. Eek! I clung tightly as he snickered. “I want to fight next to you someday. I promise to teach you how to use a sword. I bet you would be great with a rapier!” He mused walking over to the table that was next to the armoire. He gently set me down on the tabletop and cupped my face coming nose to nose with me. “I have something that I absolutely need to tell you now that I have your surrender in hand.” I watched him in silence wondering what he had to say now. I told you so?He looked me in the eyes and whispered, “Karen Anne Elizabeth I have feelings for you. Not feelings of lust- Genuine feelings.” I felt my face get hot. “You’ve freed me from the pain and solitude I have felt for the last several years because of what my family wants me to be. I have felt so alive in the last several months because of you. You don’t try to change me or make me
-Karen-“Karen, that room you were in this morning, was that your servant room?” Joanne asked curiously. Bart gave her a sharp look and she looked down. It doesn’t bother me Bart.“Yes. That was my room. I forgot how cold it could get in the winter.” I answered with a grin. “That was an upgraded room too.” Joanne’s eyes got wide as I nodded. “Some servants have to share a room with bunk beds. And the only space they would get was a basket that hangs off the end of the bunk. Those are either four or six people to a room. It’s usually for servants that are in a family. I was in one of those rooms with a mother and her two daughters when I was really small... Although it didn’t make a difference because she stuck us on the top bunk and made us share the thinnest blanket while she took the other three.” I recalled thinking about those poor girls. They had it just as rough as I did.“That’s horrible.” Bart replied shaking his head. “Some people shouldn’t be parents.”“It’s in the past.” I
-Karen-I got up before anyone could stop me and I opened the door slightly to see if I could find the cause of the screams. That presence is stronger now… It has to be one! I watched as a shadow demon lunged at a servant and bit him with its venomous teeth. He fell to the ground screaming in pain for twenty seconds until he didn’t move anymore. I felt a horrible sense of dread as I saw the demon look right at me and its eyes turned blood red. I snapped the door shut as it charged at the door. I took a step back as it clawed and punched at the door. Crap! That’s super bad!“Kay! Get away from the door!” Conor yelled. “Do you see any swords Bart? Or guns?” Those won’t work on them.“Think! Think girl!” I hissed trying to focus under pressure. “Where is the King’s study in relation to where we are?” I heard the wood start to crack under the unrelenting pressure. “I have to try to get it…” I can't let them get hurt! No matter what price I pay! I won’t let them die right when I’m standing
-Karen-I could feel Joanne’s terror as she clung to Bart with her white knuckles shaking. Bart gave me an uneasy look as he held onto her. I looked back over at Conor who had a look of concern on his face. Those feelings again… I looked down feeling the same emotions from earlier well up in my chest. I started to turn away when Conor grabbed my wrist. “Are you hurt?” He asked me.I was taken aback by his question. “Even if I am, I’ll be fine.” I looked over at Joanne again and saw that she had been injured at some point though I didn’t know how. Might have been when I punched through that rock wall. A rock could have flown at them when I got really angry. Might have had a lapse in concentration on the barrier. Her right shoulder was bleeding from a cut. I stepped over to her and placed my hand gently on her shoulder as she flinched at my touch. I felt horrible for scaring her and even worse that she would think I would harm her. She looked like she was going to burst into tears.“You
-Conor-“I know… I hope she doesn’t but if she does, I’ll take care of her. After all, I love her and want what’s best for her.” Conor replied. He picked up her left hand and saw that the marks had diminished to cover just her fingers. “The marks she had earlier are almost gone. So, that’s a good thing.” He climbed over Karen and lie down next to her resting his right hand on top of hers. “This world only has twenty hours in a day. So…” Conor thought about his plans for that night. “Can you come back around eight and if she is up, we can go through our plan?” He asked looking over at Bart.“Yeah, if not I will make a note of this in her file so we can keep an eye on her.” Bart replied as he took Joanne’s hand.“Oh! By the way Bart, did you ever find out the results of what I asked you a couple weeks ago?” Conor asked as he inched closer to Karen. Please say yes. Please say yes…“Oh! Yes I did. I’m sorry I forgot to tell you between all the extra brawls going on. According to the multi
-Karen-“Like cheesecake?” I asked grabbing a fork and cutting off a small piece from the center and eating it. They laughed at the unexpected look on my face. “That was not cheesecake… But it is delicious!” I started to cut another piece when Conor stopped me. “Hold on, Kay. You have some presents to open first.” Conor instructed pulling my hand away from the cake. “We bought thank you presents for protecting us from the demons but now that we found out it was your birthday. They can be both.”“Presents? But I-” He stopped me talking by shoving a piece of chocolate in my mouth. “Chocolate wins.” He motioned to me to sit down in my chair as he handed me a tiny box with a purple ribbon tied around it. I gave him a look and opened it. In the box I found a pair of drop earrings that had a large purple stone surrounded by tiny gray stones. “These are beautiful!” I giggled at a thought that crossed my mind. “It’s almost like it’s us…” I said lightly touching the earrings. Joanne came over
-Karen-“No Karen. No, it’s perfectly fine, my love.” He kissed my lips. “I knew it was going to be hard for you to trust me. Especially with the past you’ve had. We’ve had set backs along the way but more than anything I have done my best to show you and tell you how much I want you even when you tried to leave last week. I know you’ve struggled and that’s okay but I want to reinforce my words to you. So, I have an honest question for you: Do you think I would turn my back on you and leave you behind after everything that has happened?” He asked seriously.“Not at all, Conor. I don’t think you would unless you had no other choice.” I whispered without hesitation.“Even if I didn’t have a choice, I would stand by you. Karen, with this ring, I promise that no matter what happens in this life, I will never turn my back on you. I won’t abandon you and leave you behind. I won't let you wonder if you aren’t good enough because you’re my idea of perfection. Everything about you; scars, tear
-Conor-“I have a terrible feeling about this Nathan. We need to go to her. As soon as possible.” Conor said pacing back and forth in front of all the Mages. “After she lost consciousness, Eldon came and took her away. All he said was that she was being summoned by a tree. That's when a portal was made for me to come back here.”Nathan's eyes got wide and he lost the coloring in his face. “The Tree summoned her?” A serious yet terrified look remained on his face. Alexander started screaming making everyone jump. A portal opened and everyone stood up while Joanne worked to calm him down. “Karen?” Conor asked feeling hopeful. Eldon walked through carrying her, but he was stoic. “She’s going to be okay, right?”Eldon gently placed her into his arms. He didn’t answer right away. “Not exactly.” The portal shut as all the Mages gathered around. “As you know, she won the war against your father with your help. However, she lost the fight.” He said quietly. “Senescence, has deemed that she i
“Soul Release.” I whispered quietly. I watched as the souls compressed into different color orbs and floated away on the breeze. Bombs started falling around me while breathing became harder. “Healing Serenity.” I’ve used a flurry of spells and I still have a small chunk of magic left. I can easily get two or three more Master spells… I think. I decided to change positions so I could get a better aim at the last large ship flying around. I still have those small ships too… I took a deep breath and sent a Blazing Hypernova up to the middle area of the small ships. They all exploded in a bright flash and the wreckage fell to the destroyed town. I looked around for the large ship, but a bullet ricocheted very close to where I stood. Suddenly, more soldiers appeared charging at me.“Frostfire Surge!” I shouted angrily. All the soldiers shouted in pain and collapsed dead around us in heaps. I pointed up at the sky as the ship tried to leave again. “Blazing Hypernova!” Due to the high level
-Karen-A blow to the back of the head put me on the ground faster than I ever thought possible. Blow after blow was delivered as I squirmed to get away, but Zachary pinned me under him and continued to land a barrage of punches. He yelled and screamed about what I had done to his family. I grabbed his ankle and let him have a taste of ‘Lightning Surge’. It bought me enough precious time to weakly get to my knees.“Recovery Salvo.” I shakily got to my feet and leaned against the wall, but he was no where to be seen. I looked around nervously, but nothing moved. I heard the bullets before I felt them. Hot metal burrowed its way into my right thigh followed by my abdomen, left arm and chest. I collapsed in heap trying to fight the massive amounts of pain I felt. “Healing Serenity!” I whispered under my breath. Damn, another healing spell… I whispered for a portal and fled to the shadows of a building across town. There were still so many ships in the air, and I was starting to feel the
-Karen-“We don’t have a choice anymore!” I snapped back frustratedly. “This is it, Conor- We fight or we die- I’m not about to let him claim victory. There is going to have to be a risk in order to win this fight. I plan on coming back, you know.”“But what if you don’t, Kay? What if Eldon doesn’t revive you?” Conor asked firmly. He cupped my face and stared me in the eyes. “What if you’re gone forever?” What if… Such a big 'what if' and its running through my mind too.I didn’t answer him right away. “I’m going to die someday. I’d rather die fighting for my family and the people I care about than to run and live in fear wondering if today will be the day. As long as I don’t exhaust my magic and turn into a demon, I should be fine.” I’ve used a small bit of my magic, but I still have more than plenty. As long as I can take them out in fifteen to twenty Master level attacks, it should be okay. Permitting this doesn’t drag out for very long.I could see he was very much not accepting o
-Karen-“Your sudden jerking movements re-opened a wound I repaired.” Bart explained as I lay still looking up at the ceiling of the empty crypt bed. “I stitched it closed but you can't be doing those type of movements yet.” I sighed feeling useless as another bomb shook the ground.“Let me put some salve on her stitches, doctor.” Valerie murmured rubbing in a sweet smelling cream. “This should help numb the stitches so they won't hurt if you do have to move.”“Thank you both.” I replied, slowly sitting up. “Those bombs have been falling for the last three days now. How much more punishment can the main floor of the Crypts take?” I asked Nathan, feeling uneasy about our situation.I could see that Nathan was very reluctant to answer. “It probably won't be much longer, honestly. We have to make some hard choices now. The only other place we can go is the Forest and that has its own set of challenges and hazards as you know.” He heaved a heavy sigh, rubbing his face from the growing pre
-Karen-At the snap of my fingers, my brother’s arms were torn from his body. Screams of agony echoed around me while the soldiers took aim at me. A soldier was yelling, but I paid him no mind. I heard the same soldier call my brother’s name, Marcus, telling him to hold on. I giggled softly enjoying this scary side of myself and met Marcus’s now terrified yet agonized gaze. “Marcus… I’m going to annihilate you and as I do, I will make sure that your soul quivers in unimaginable terror.” He some how lost more coloring in is face at my calm words“Ground Spears!” I shouted angrily punching up into the air. The soldiers that surrounded us were now high up on the points of the spears with blood gushing and dripping down the jagged rocks, more groans and moans of pain filling the air which was tainted with the scent of blood. “Soul Snatch!” I ripped the wispy soul out of the body, and he looked terrified. “Soul’s Doom!” Just like before, a white demon charged right at him and shredded his
-Karen-I woke up enveloped in warmth, but I was extremely sore. I really felt like I hit every tree branch coming down from that fall. So sweet- He changed my dress. The orchid under dress. I looked over to my right and saw Conor and Alexander cuddled up next to me both sleeping with their mouths open. Ha- My loves. “Conor!” I whispered softly. I tried to roll over and found out that was a mistake. Ah! I’m still busted up pretty badly… I grabbed his hand that was cupping my left cheek and gently squeezed it. Wake up!Without opening his eyes, “You’re the most recklessly insane person I know, Karen Anne Elizabeth. That was awe-inspiring, terrifying and thrilling all at once, but I don’t want to repeat that any time soon.” Conor said rubbing my cheek with his index finger. Mm. So warm… “We’ve only lost two ships in two separate incidents before but that was insane!” He opened an eye and leaned into me. “You have a lot of injuries still. You broke lots of bones. Bet you’re sore?”“Very!
-Karen-Conor groaned while rubbing his face and then looked up at me. He rubbed his eyes again. “Is that really you, Kay? You’re not an illusion, right?” He whispered sitting up quickly and grabbing my left hand pressing my palm to his lips. “You know I’m not upset with you- Don’t you?” I dropped my gaze feeling so much shame as I stood before him. “I-”“You may not be upset but I am.” I interrupted quietly. “I just see myself punching you and then charging at Joanne and then the nightmares I had. I may not be cursed anymore but the weight of my guilt is so heavy. I feel like I should just die and end everything once and for all. But that wouldn’t be fair to you or to Alex.” I closed the gap between us and hugged him tightly. “I love you Conor. I love you and I hate that I only hurt you… I feel like I do nothing but that.”He was silent but he held me tightly to him after he pulled me onto his lap. “I wasn’t sure if I was going to get this again.” Conor kissed my cheek and nuzzled my
-Karen-Sweet kisses on my lips woke me up though it took me several minutes to realize I was in bed next to Conor. As soon as I did, I tried to move away from him. “Ah ah ah!” He captured me quickly and pulled me back to him. No. Please don’t!I completely avoided his gazes and wouldn’t let him kiss me at all. “Karen- You won’t even look at me.” I could hear the disappointment in his voice. “Alexander cried all night after you left. Will you at least hug him?” I shook my head. “He says Mama now.” I don’t care. I can’t be here anymore! I only hurt you. I can’t continue to be a danger to you and everyone else here.I took advantage of the situation and pulled away from him. “Karen! Wait!” I left the tent as quickly as I could hearing him following me. “Please just listen to me!”All eyes were on me and it shot me right back to the memory of charging at Joanne. I dashed to the clearing and left the camp as fast as I could. I raced back to the Royal Crypt, crying the whole way. The guilt