Aurelia

The drop dead silence that enveloped the gigantic hall was broken by the sound of approaching footsteps. The large door made of gold flung open and in came running a young soldier dressed fully in a soldier regalia. He ran to the centre of the hall and fell on his knees with a thud.

"My Lord." He called out pleadingly amidst heavy pants. On the gold throne that sat in the middle of the room, sat a man with folded legs and closed eyes. His rich garments and well-made hair showed his mighty status.

Slowly opening his eyes, he glared at the guard who had interrupted his quiet time. "Speak!" he commanded gruffly.

"My Lord. The Demon clan started a war. They are on their way here as we speak." The poor guard reported.

King Garren chuckled, "I didn't know they would be this fast." He waved his palm, dismissing the confused guard and then closing his eyes, he returned to his former state. Not long after, another guard came rushing in, reporting that the palace gate had been broken into but this time, King Garren didn't open his eyes, nor did he listen to him. Two more guards came, starring at their king who was without worries despite the war that was eating his people. Finally, the door burst open and this time, a man dressed in a fiery red robe walked in, carrying a sword whose blade was stained with blood. Behind him were gruff-looking men whose sight made the soldiers cringe in fear.

That uniform... why were the elite soldiers of the demon clan here?

The man in the fiery red robe walked languidly to one of the gold stools and made himself comfortable. "Hello, old friend."

King Garren remained motionless and the intruder frowned at the fact he was being ignored. "Ignoring me will not save you now, Garren. In case you don't know, the entire dragon clan is now under my command."

Finally, King Garren opened his eyes, "Hello, Draven." He greeted with a sly smile, "It's nice to finally meet you again."

"Enough with the pep talk. I need the jade seal."

King Garren's brow creased, "Jade seal? You can take it."

This time, Draven was visibly angry. He drew his sword and slayed the guard nearest to him, "How about you watch your men fall one after the other?"

"It's of no use. I've told you, you can take the jade seal once you set eyes on it."

Draven disappeared and reappeared just beside the king with the tip of his blade touching the neck of the king, "Are you ready to give it up now?"

Garren chuckled and took a look at the man whose blade was pointed to his neck. This was the Lord of the Demon clan. The same young lord who had murdered his own father to take over the throne. Of course, he knew he wouldn't be able to escape death by the hands of this vile man but it wasn't like he wasn't expecting it anyway. With a last smile, he began to silently mutter some strange words. At first, Draven had thought he was trying to protect himself from the pain he was about to inflict on him but when a red light began to envelop him, he realized what the old man was up to but it was too late. The light flung him so hard that the wall he had hit nearly crumbled.

The old cheat! He was transferring the jade seal. But to who?

He stood up and made to approach the ols man who was still enshrouded in the red light but the power of the jade seal wasn't something any immortal could resist. He could only stand by the side, helplessly till the process was over. The minute the red light disappeared, he rushed to the man's side, unshocked by his physical changes. Aside strength, the jade seal also gave its owner the ability to look young forever and now that the king no longer possessed it, his young look was gone, replaced with his old skin and a head of white hair.

"What did you do, Garren?!" Draven barked.

King Garren smiled for the briefest second and just as he opened his mouth to speak, he puked out blood from him mouth and clutched his chest in pain, "The throne of Wyvern doesn't belong to you, Draven. Its rightful owner will come for it someday."

"Nonsense!" Draven yelled. He was scared of this truth, "In Wyvern, the most powerful rules!"

"But not without the jade seal, isn't it?" the jade seal gave its owner access to every power in Wyvern, including access to the kingdom's secret. It made its owner the most powerful.

"I'll find the damn seal. Just you watch me from the spirit world." Draven laughed like a maniac. He couldn't stop now. His obsession for the throne of Wyvern had made him kill his father and take over his position as Lord of the Demon clan. He wasn't going to let this old man take that away from him.

Watching the scared man, King Garren laughed out loud again, followed by another vomit of blood. Life was slowly draining out of him. That was the consequence of transferring the jade seal without the proper process but he was glad. At least, he didn't let it fall into the wrong hands. He stared into space and just then, his eyes caught a small figure hiding behind a pillar.

His son...

He had so much to say to the little boy but now, it was so sad he couldn't. Whoever you are, the one whom the seal chose. The chosen one. I hope you would save this kingdom from the abyss. Don't worry, the seal will show you how, all you have to do...coughs...is to agree.

"Don't bother trying to save yourself, old man, you are still going to die anyway." Draven taunted.

King Garren gave him a lopsided smile, "I'll make sure I save a space for you in hell." He had barely finished his statement when his head flew from his body, his lopsided smile still on his lifeless face.

The bell rang out loud and Aurelia heaved a sigh of relief. After sitting put for more than an hour, she felt she was about to reach her limit. Grabbing her bag, she slung it over her shoulder, careful not to pull off the hood over her head. she then headed home.

What a day!

"Hello there, Miss. Hoodie."

Aurelia halted, knowing that voice fully well. It was Bella, the class beauty and bully, and her crew. She made to move again but the girl's harsh voice halted her again.

"Did I say you could go?" Bella asked, folding her arms just below her bosom.

"She's dangerous, Bella. Don't you see, she hasn't spoken to anyone since her first day in school." One of the girls behind Bella said.

Bella rolled her eyes, "Dangerous? Well, I cant wait to see what stuff she is made of." She turned to Aurelia who still had her back to them, "You will show me, won't you?"

Rolling her eyes, Aurelia walked away, not giving a damn about the bluffing girl behind her. She knew Bella Morris only had the guts to challenge her because she was the dream girl of almost all the guys in school and touching her would mean facing the wrath of more than a hundred boys. As she walked away, Aurelia wished she had slapped the lousy girl's mouth shut, but then, her father's voice began to ring her ears, ...Learn to ignore insults and walk away from trouble... she sighed; so much for trying to graduate from high school and get good grades. She walked past the school gate, ignoring the cluster of flashy cars that lined up to pick students from school. She walked down the busy road and after making sure she wasn't followed, she diverted to a lonely path that led the woods. After walking for quite a long while, a cottage came into view. She knocked and entered and almost immediately, she removed her hood, allowing her silver hair to cascade down her shoulders. Gathering them, she tied it up with a band. Just then, an adjoining door opened and a man came into view.

"Look who's home." He said trying to lighten the mood but the joke died right at his mouth.

"Good afternoon, Dad." She greeted, dropping her bag on a rickety armchair nearby.

"Lunch is ready. Come on, let's eat." He spoke again. The duo then sat down to eat. Aurelia looked into her plate, nit surprised to see porridge on it. She had eaten the same thing for the past two days without a change.

"We ran out of foodstuffs." Gerald, her father explained as if able to read her mind. He knew his daughter so well and despite her usual expressionless face, he could tell what ran through her mind, "I'll stop by the supermarket tomorrow to replenish our stock."

Aurelia remained quiet.

"So, how was school today?" He asked her.

"You mean the usual 'ignore 'em all' thing? It's working out fine except I badly want to kick some people's ass." Her voice lowered to a whisper, "Can't you just let me?"

Gerald dropped his spoon and sighed, "look Aurelia, I told you before. The rules of life are graduating..."

"Graduating with good grades, land yourself a well-paying job, marry, have kids, and be a good mother." She helped him finish it off, "But that doesn't mean I should stand still and watch someone make a laughing stock out of me."

"Rule number ten." Her father reminded her.

"I know it like the back of my hands, Dad. Ignore insults and walk away from trouble."

Gerald picked up his spoon again, "I'm glad you do remember."

Aurelia nodded quietly. She had learned to be a good girl and do exactly as she was told without question. Quickly, she cleared her plate of porridge and carried it to the kitchen but not without gulping down the glass of water her father had placed for her. It had been some sort of rule ever since she was a kid. She always had to drink up a glass of water, twice a day. According to him, it was good for digestion, and knowing she couldn't complain, she always did as she was told.

The rest of the afternoon passed by uneventfully and after dinner, she went straight to bed, after doing the dishes. After making sure his daughter was asleep, Gerald crept into the room, carefully sitting beside her on the bed to avoid waking her. He pushed away the strands of hair on her face and sat there quietly watching her sleep until he probably developed a crane in his neck. Turning off her bedside lamp, he kissed her forehead before heading back to his room, closing the door noiselessly behind him. Entering his room, a familiar aura alerted his senses.

Quickly, she bowed his head, "My Lord."

A figure appeared on the only sofa in the room, his face hidden in the dark, "Report."

"I don't think we have the right girl, my Lord. There have been no signs. There is no reaction to the portion either."

"You should know I hate failures, Azazel. I didn't come all the way to earth to hear such bad news." The man spoke nonchalantly.

Gerald's heart skipped a beat, "Forgive me, my Lord."

"The black witch confirmed the seal or do you have a reason why I shouldn't trust her words?"

"No, my Lord."

"Then find a way to get me the seal. If I return here next time and you give me the same report, be sure to lose your head."

"Yes, my Lord." He remained in the bowing position until he could no longer feel the aura of the intruder. Only then did he lift up his head, heaving a big sigh of relief before slumping on his bed. This was going to be much harder than he thought.

The alarm barely went off when Aurelia awoke. Quickly, she went through her usual morning routine before returning downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was quiet as usual; after all, it was a bad habit to talk while eating. After the meal, she downed the glass of water handed down to her by her dad before quickly rushing out, following the ever lonely but familiar path until she successfully found herself by the busy streets, surrounded by noises that were quite unfamiliar to her.

Thankfully, her father had chosen a private location for their home else she doubt she would be able to live with all the noise. Walking on, she finally got to her school gate. As usual, there were clusters of money-draining cars around the front of the school. Not like she cared anyway. Keeping her head down, she headed towards her class when all of a sudden, she felt something hit the back of her head, making her hiss in pain. She turned, only to find Bella with her crew of girls standing behind her.

"Did it hurt? Ouch!" Bella taunted.

Aurelia swallowed hard and then turned to continue her journey to her classroom.

"I told you ladies. She's a big weakling. She doesn't even know how to defend herself. Poor Lia." The girls behind Bella giggled at Bella's comment. Aurelia sighed. She took a deep breath to calm her raging emotions and walked on. Revenge was for the weak, said her father and now, it rang mightily in her head. maybe, he was right. As she walked out of sight, Bella stomped her feet in anger. why couldn't she tap into this girl's emotion and make fun of her? Everyone in school knew the quiet hood girl who spoke to literally no one. She didn't make friends either and the news went round that everyone was scared of this girl. It made Bella mad. This hoodie girlie was a weakling and she was going to prove it to everyone. The thought of it made a naughty smile spread across her lips. Classes went on, as usual, that day, and just at the end of school when Aurelia was about to return home, an egg flew from nowhere, hitting her at the back of her head. Aurelia stopped as she felt the gelatinous liquid wet her hood. Now, she was holding on to her temper on a thin thread. She turned abruptly, not surprised to see Bella standing hands akimbo.

"Oh my God! Did it hit you?" she asked her voice heavy with sarcasm. Aurelia glared heavily at her. Hoping the spoilt brat got the message and just leave her alone. But Bella didn't seem like she was giving up anytime soon. Instead, she approached the girl who was fuming in anger, glad that her method was finally working.

"What? You won't even accept my apology? What do you want to do? Fight back."

Aurelia balled her fist. She had never felt so angry before. She had never felt this mad. She only stood rooted to the ground, trying hard to fight this strange feeling that seemed to overwhelm her. It was taking control of her senses and even her father's word wouldn't stop it. Seeing her balled fist, Bella already guessed what was going on. With a naughty smile on her face, she stood in front of the girl but just as she reached out to remove her hood, with reflex, Aurelia caught her straying arm, and the next minute, Bella felt her body hit the hard floor heavily, as she passed out. Seeing the unconscious girl on the ground, fear gripped Aurelia. Her heart pounded heavily against her chest as she stared at her palms, unable to figure out what had happened. Noticing the mini crowd that was beginning to converge around her, she ran away quickly, not stopping, until she found herself in the lonely path that led to her home. Panting heavily, she looked around, making sure she was not being followed. Suddenly, it hit her. First, dull pain in her abdomen then it grew by the second, then everywhere began to spin and her body fell with a thud, as she lost sight of her environment.

When Aurelia opened her eyes, she found herself back on her bed in her room. Sitting up, she wondered how she had gotten home. Was it her Dad? And why had she fainted all of a sudden? The pain... gasping, she reached out for her stomach but heaved in relief when she realized the pain was no longer there. Thank goodness.

Sitting up, she left her room, heading downstairs. She could hear her father's footsteps in the kitchen. Pushing her straying hair away from her face, she pushed the kitchen door open, "Good afternoon, Dad." She greeted nervously.

"Good evening to you too, Lia." He replied and only then did she notice the time. "You must be hungry," He continued. "Have a seat."

Nodding, she obediently took a seat and obediently ate what he served her, glad it wasn't porridge. Quietly, she ate her meal, counting the time to when the dreaded topic would be mentioned and the time finally did come.

"Mind explaining what happened at school today?" He finally asked her.

Aurelia continued with her meal, not surprised at the question. It wasn't the first time her father was knowing what happened in her school even before she could tell him. Sometimes, she wondered how he did it.

"I am sorry, Papa." She quickly apologized.

He sighed, "You know saying sorry won't suffice, don't you?"

She remained silent, knowing what the answer already was.

Closing his eyes, he sighed again as if struggling, "Come up to my room after your meal for your punishment." With that, he walked to his room, ignoring the pair of eyes that followed his every move. Aurelia looked down at her meal, suddenly losing appetite but for now, it was her only means of prolonging the minutes to her punishment. Suddenly, she began to regret why she had fallen bait to Bella. Perhaps, if she had continued walking, this wouldn't have happened.