Prologue

The clash of metal on metal sliced through the silence of night. Rain was falling in sheets and every few minutes a flash of lightning would illuminate the dim streets where hundreds of soldiers swung swords at each other. The citizens were hiding within their homes, waiting for the battle to move away.

The war was for the capital city of Kansai and the head of the Queen. At least, that’s what the soldiers thought they were fighting for. In reality the battle was just a cover-up for what was really happening within the walls of the castle; a reality history would never know about.

Lanterns lit the massive throne room poorly, casting flickering shadows across the floor. The queen and her court were nowhere to be seen, probably hiding in a secret room or escaping though hidden tunnels. Either way, the only people present in the luxurious room were a man who must have been in his forties and a young woman who looked to be about seventeen.

“Did you think I wouldn't realize you creatures were hiding here?” the man’s voice was like ice, his fingers curled around the handle of a dagger that was currently against the girl’s neck, “Did you?!” The dagger dug into her skin, drawing a line of blood.

“No.” Nettie, the girl, replied in an even tone, “We knew you would find us here; however we thought you were too smart to try something like this.” A smile crossed her lips, “We were wrong.”

The man, Lucius, tightened his grip on the dagger and, using his free hand, pulled her head back by the hair so she could see the deadly look in his eyes. “I don’t think making fun of me is your best choice in this situation.” He whispered coldly, “One flick of this blade will end your life right here.”

Nettie’s laugh echoed harshly off the walls, “Have you forgotten what I am?” She questioned loudly, “I am a Victura, if you kill me here I’ll reincarnate and then you’re back at square one. Not to mention my companion will be no doubt annoyed that he has to wait nearly one hundred years for me to be born again and then another sixteen for me to recover my memories; chances are he’ll kill you.”

“But I can kill you Nettie; and I will.” Lucius’ voice had taken an eerie calmness as he reached into the pocket of his jacket and withdrew a vial filled with a translucent purple liquid.

Nettie could feel her blood run cold, “Where did you get that?”

Now it was Lucius’ turn to laugh, “My methods of obtaining this drug are not important, rather, I’d prefer they remained a secret.”

“This won’t accomplish anything.” She hissed, “I’ll still be alive.”

“You forget that it’s not you I hate, it’s that boy of yours.” Lucius reminded her, “Imagine what it would be like to know that the one person you love doesn't know who you are.” The color drained from Nettie’s face; no.

“It’s the end for you.” Lucius chimed, sounding please with himself. He waved the vial in her face and she could smell an evil odor even through the glass. “This will get rid of those pesky memories and put an end to your sickly sweet romance. The only problem is how to administer the drug, see, drinking it won’t work; it needs to enter the bloodstream directly.”

Nettie’s body went ridged as the knife dug deeper into her skin and she was suddenly aware that she was lying on the floor. Her hands went to her neck, which was white hot with pain, and she quickly discovered that she couldn't breathe. Lucius’ laugh sounded distant and Nettie put two and two together, he had slit her throat and now she was dying.

A gurgle escaped her throat as she tried to cry out in pain. She was dimly aware of Lucius pushing her hands out of his way and then a cool liquid was on her neck, the poison. She found it hard to focus of anything though, and the lights in the room seemed brighter.

“No…” she choked, her voice hoarse, “Please don’t take them away from me…” Images flashed past her eyes as she lay there, and slowly, slowly the faces began to fade away. “Manasseh…” she whispered, naming one of the most frequent faces. Gradually though she could feel the name becoming less familiar until she began to wonder who the person she kept seeing was.

“Who is that?” Nettie thought absently, “Why do I feel a pain in my chest whenever I see his face?” She could feel tears streaking down her cheeks, “Why do I want to be with you so much?”

 ***

“There.” Lucius voice dripped with satisfaction as he stood over the now dead Nettie, “I may not be able to kill that demon but I did a good job of taking away the one thing he loves.” He dropped the empty vial of the floor and started for the exit only to pause halfway as a young man with white hair entered the room.

“Ah, Manasseh, so nice of you to join us,” Lucius welcomed the boy with a cheerful tone, “Well, I suppose it’s not really us anymore now is it?” He stepped to the side to allow a clear view of the girl.

“Nettie!” Mana crossed the room at an unearthly speed and knelt next to her still warm body. He lifted her head gently, letting his fingers tangle in her snowy white hair. “This accomplishes nothing Lucius.” Mana said quietly, his golden eyes never leaving her glazed red ones.

“I think it does.” Lucius crowed, “I just got done giving dearie here a wonderful poison that clears the mind, quite literally actually. Even if your love here reincarnates she won’t remember you. Not. At. All.” He laughed cruelly, “Your Nettie is completely and truly gone Manessah, forever.”

“Nettie…” Mana’s voice was dull, and his gaze felt hay and out of focus. He got to his feet slowly and faced Lucius, the man that had been responsible for so many wrongs in his past. “You’re lying.” He spat, refusing to accept the truth that was before him.

In a quick movement he lunged forward, his hands around Lucius’ throat. From this distance he could see the deep wrinkles in the man’s face, notice the grey hair growing among the brown. Mana caught Lucius’ green eyes.

“If you think I’m a sorry sight you should look at yourself Mana.” He laughed, “It’s still my victory even if you kill me; your Nettie was the only thing you had.” His laugh remained in Mana’s ears long after the life had passed from under his hands.

He let the body drop to the floor and silently returned to Nettie’s empty shell. He carefully lifted her into his arms and brushed a stray strand of hair out of her face. She was wearing her favorite dress, a delicate blue thing, with many layers of lace and silk. Even with the red stain slowly spreading across the surface she looked lovely in it.

“Nettie…”

The clash of metal on metal outside was interrupted by a lonely wail.

Reviews

[Amaya Sullivan]

This seems very interesting. I am about to read the next chapter.