Chapter 23: Flashbacks
Helena shut her eyes tightly.
This is it.
But the moment it touched her
something changed.
Something inside her awakened.
A sudden burst of energy exploded from her body.
The darkness shattered.
The ground trembled beneath her.
Helena's eyes flew open.
The fear was gone.
Replaced by something she couldn't explain.
Her heartbeat slowed.
The wind shifted.
It no longer fought her.
It answered her.
The cloaked figures staggered back.
"What is this?" one hissed.
"It's too soon…"
Helena stared at her hands, trembling. She didn't understand what was happening but she could feel it.
Power.
Wild.
Uncontrolled.
Alive.
Suddenly
images flooded her mind.
A woman her eyes filled with both fear and love.
A man… shadowed, powerful, reaching toward a child.
Voices overlapping.
"Protect her"
"They will find her"
"She must not be seen"
Helena gasped, clutching her head.
The visions vanished instantly.
"What was that?" she whispered.
The energy around her surged again, stronger now, spiraling out of control.
The figures stepped back, cautious.
"She's awakening."
"No… this wasn't supposed to happen yet."
Helena looked at them, fear turning into anger.
"Why are you doing this to me?" she demanded.
Silence.
Then one of them spoke.
"Because if you live long enough…"
A pause.
"…everything ends."
Before she could respond, the wind erupted again this time violently.
But now
it wasn't them.
It was her.
A powerful force burst outward from her body, pushing the attackers back into the shadows.
The trees shook.
The ground cracked.
And then
everything stopped.
The wind died.
The night returned to silence.
Helena collapsed to her knees, breathing heavily.
The figures were gone.
As if they had never been there.
She stared at her hands, shaking.
"What… am I?"
Her heart raced as fear slowly crept back in.
She didn't understand.
But one thing was certain
whatever had awakened inside her…
it wasn't normal.
And it wasn't something she could escape.
Slowly, she stood.
The palace stood in the distance.
Familiar.
But no longer safe.
Helena swallowed hard and began walking.
Unaware that far behind her, hidden in the shadows
someone was still watching.
And this time
they were afraid.