Chapter 33

Emmy I slowly open my eyes. My body hurts like hell. I feel like I have been attacked by a huge dragon, oh wait I was. My shoulder is burning. I moan as I try to sit up. I feel arms come around me and help me sit up. It’s Carter. As my vision clears, I see Vivian, Jason, and my dad. They all come around me. I tell them they need to gather the team. They need to know what I saw.

Everyone piles into the healing wing. I can see they are relieved that I’m awake. Luna is on the bed by my feet. I feel very loved as I see the concerned look of my friends and family around me. I explain everything from fighting the Enchantress, to seeing my mom on the beach, and learning about the Enchantress’s past.

Travis already knew about how the Enchantress came to be. I don't let on that I know he is born directly from her womb. Somehow that doesn't seem important right now. Plus, I don’t know how the others would react; they already seem to be having a hard time accepting Travis as it is. Besides, it’s just weird and I don't need any more weird.

Right now, I have a twisted dark witch who calls herself the Enchantress hunting me down for my damn heart and soul. I find out that the soul is where a witch’s magic is held, and my heart is my life force. With these the Enchantress can take over the world. She wants to control me, but if she can't control me, she will kill me and take what she wants anyway. Nothing like having a deranged killer possessing your mom’s body and chasing you. Oh, and the killer is my grandmother. I swear I don't think this could get anymore twisted.

Travis makes everyone leave so that I can rest. I’m weak from the poison. I’m glad to have some peace and quiet. I know everyone is worried and cares, but I just need time to think. Time to think without everyone else’s thoughts imposing on my own. I have to come to terms with everything that is going on. I must find a way to pick up my shattered pieces and put them back together.

I also can feel the dark magic fully coming to light. I had let it out and there was no way to put it back. I must talk to Travis about this. He will be able to help me. Now that the darkness was fully awoken in me, I can feel the change take place. I was having another awakening.

Days pass, and I’m still laid up in the healing wing. The poison is powerful, and it has taken a toll on my body. Combine that with my dark magic awakening in me and I’m completely spent. My body might be weak, but my mind is on the go. I can't seem to get out of my own thoughts. I have so much to figure out. Travis comes in and sits down next to me.

“What are you thinking about, little Bird?”

“Everything. I don’t know how we are going to defeat the Enchantress. I’m afraid that there is no way to save mom. I’m waiting for Carter to tell me he has joined the warriors. I’m trying to not be mad at him, but I hate when people keep things from me.”

The truth is, I’m lost and confused. I feel like my world is crumbling and shattering faster than I can put it back together. I feel like I’m drowning. Right now, everything and everyone feels far away but I know I must come to terms with certain things on my own. I know I’m stronger than I was before, and I can handle a lot, but part of me wonders how much I can handle before I break for good. With the dark magic now fully awake I have even more to worry about. I must learn to control this new part of me.

“Carter is a good man. I’m happy he is your soulmate. I know that him and Avery are being sworn into the Warriors in a few days. They both plan on telling the group afterwards. I’m not a huge fan of the Warriors or the Reapers, but that’s mainly because they were always hunting me. Give Carter a break, he didn’t do it on purpose. Not like the rest of us did.”

“I know. It still bothers me though. I feel like I’m losing control over every aspect of my life,” I’m feeling slightly defeated.

“Nothing in life is fair, Little Bird. You are much stronger than you realize. You can let this make or break you, but if you are anything like your parents you won’t give up so easily. Your mom and I dealt with hard choices. From keeping our marriage and love a secret, to how to hide you from the enchantress. We had to fake my death so the reapers would get off my back. When everything seemed impossible and there was no light at the end of the tunnel, your mom and I held on to each other. You have Carter, and he will do anything for you. He loves you. I can read his mind, and you consume his thoughts. Not only do you have your soulmate, but you have a team made up of friends that care about you. Plus, you have your trainers, Vivian, Jason, Kenzie and me. You have so much more at your disposal than I ever did.”

“I’ve been on my own for so long. After mom died or got taken, I just had to learn to be on my own. William was barely there for me and the twins hated me. I was away from Alice and I really didn’t have any other friends besides Carter, but even then, I was crushing so hard on him I retreated half the time.”

“I know. I was on my own for most of my life. When I met your mom, I didn’t let her help me at first because I didn’t know how to let someone help me. You must let go of your need for control. Trust your team, your trainers, your soulmate and your family. We won’t let anything happen to you.”

I nod my head. I’m glad Travis is there. I was glad he was my real dad. I hadn't spent much time with him, but there was a connection there that I didn’t have with William. Maybe William somehow knew I wasn’t his real daughter, maybe I always knew it, but never could admit it. I never had the connection with William, and I knew him a lot longer than Travis.

“I want to learn to use my dark magic. I feel it waking in me, coming to light. It activated when I fought the Enchantress. I need help dad. I don’t know how to control this part of me.” Admitting I needed help was the first step.

“That’s my, Little Bird,” he says with a smile. “I’m going to warn you right now. You might not like what you find when you use your dark magic. If you thought it was hard to control your light magic, it’s going to be ten times harder to control your dark magic. The Enchantress will try to use your dark magic, the darkness in you to get you to join her. She will appeal to the darkness. You are going to have to learn to control yourself while giving up control simultaneously. You will be a walking, talking conflict. Do you feel the light and the dark battling each other?”

I nod my head yes. The endless war had started inside of my soul. The light vs the dark, each fighting to take control of the other one. I wasn’t sure which one would win, maybe neither had to win. I feel like I’m strong enough to find out.

“Good. Use that to help you control yourself. The battle you feel inside of you will lesson in time, but it will always be there. There are going to be days that you feel like you are losing your mind with the war inside of your soul, and then there will be days that you forget there is even a war at all. Emmy, you will have to be completely shattered before you can even begin to put the new you together.”

“I don’t think I can get anymore shattered and broken than I already am,” I counter.

Travis grins.

“I think you might be right, but you will be surprised at what fate can throw at you.”

“Yeah, well, if I ever get my hands on fate, I’m going to kick its ass.”

Travis laughs.

“You and I both, little bird, you and I both. Now rest up, you’re going to need it. Your first lesson is to open your mind. Open your mind to the possibility that nothing is impossible. Open your mind and find the strength that I know you have in you, find it and embrace it.” Travis kisses my forehead, and then walks out of the healing wing.

I lean back on the bed and close my eyes. Open my mind. Could I let myself believe that I was strong enough to survive this? Was I brave enough to face my own darkness that laid dormant inside of me, waiting to come out and play like the monster it was? I believe that I can control my dark magic, control myself, and control the balance that I need to find between light and dark.

Picking up the shattered pieces and putting my life back together. I’m strong, I’ve faced a lot harder challenges, this will not break me, but I will bend. In time I will do whatever it takes to win. Embracing the light and darkness; will come to make me strong and brave. This girl is not scared anymore the fighter in me will not allow me to look back, finally facing my fears. In my mind I will be the savior everyone needs in time.