2 CHAPTER 1
The Past…
When I was a little girl, I remember the moment I was woken abruptly by my granny as a child in a state of panic. It appeared that our hideout had been discovered and was currently going through an attack by those detestable shadow creatures hunting for supernatural blood.
That night lives were lost, my parents got missing, and I suddenly became an orphan all over again. I remember going through the motions of forcing on my clothes in a hurry, watching the chaotic events happening around us in confusion.
Only, we and a few fortunate others were quick enough to sneak into the escape tunnel leading towards an exit behind the large wall that was once a barrier of protection.
"What's going on granny?" I had questioned, running as fast as my little legs could get me while trying my hardest not to lose grip of her tight hold.
We had safely gotten out of the tunnel on the other side of the wall when I was lifted off my feet and held in the arms of my granny. I watched cluelessly while the adults argued out a plan of action to take. In the end, everyone agreed to separate and hide out safely until they could find an opportunity to regroup.
Over the shoulder of my granny, I remember watching them disappear into the dark forest, not a single one of us having the opportunity to say goodbye.
Overcoming one unfortunate experience over the other, I'd thought life would be a little easier and peaceful, but reality proved me wrong. Letting out a grunt of anger, I rush forward while practising my sword techniques on a scarecrow that has seen better days.
Letting the wooden sword hit the scarecrow from the side before swiftly hitting the head, my mind recalls the mocking words and images of my peers from just a few hours ago. "Hahahaha... look at that, the cursed witch thinks she's someone important just because she controls fire."
Running towards the scarecrow with my wooden sword raised, I let out a deep roar of anger as I practised the techniques taught to me by my late adopted father. Though, there's little to practice.
Breathing in heavily, I ignore the tickling trail of perspiration running down my face and continued my assault until I ended the one-sided combat by hitting a vital point if my opponent had been human or… alive.
Another image flashes past my thoughts and I tightened my hold around the wood. A violent burst of rage caused my arms to ignite in flames. At a young age, it's often ingrained in my brain that what I need to practice the most when it comes to my powers is the ability to gain control over my emotions. A problem is pretty common for hot-blooded fire elemental mages.
Letting out a grunt of frustration, I stare at the sword which has now turned to a pile of ashes on the ground and tried to put out the flames. Closing my eyes, I command the flames to die out but end up doing the exact opposite.
Rather than extinguish, the flames grow even wilder and encompass my entire body in a fiery blaze of red. Panicking did nothing to sate my erratic emotions, so I tried my hardest to calm down even though I have just destroyed all my clothes and now stand completely naked in the middle of a field. Gazing around frantically I tried to put out the flames but somehow ended up making the flames spread across the field quickly.
Just when I thought things couldn't get any worse the clouds above my head began to change in colour, darker shades rolling in with a heavy storm. Lightning and thunder rang through the sky like a sharp whip on the flesh of a human, rainfall pelting down on me with heavy drops, dowsing me until the flames are extinguished.
The loud explosion of laughter made me look over my shoulder with a glare, my anger rekindled by the sight of a wrinkled old woman bent forward. That little old witch!
