Chapter 3: Alida

It was dark. I could barely see where I was going; the young man guiding me, his big hand was holding mine, gently pulling me along the dark tunnel that supposedly guided to a safe place.

"We're here," letting go of my hand, the heat of his hand still lingered in mine, he pushed a brick that revealed a small hologram asking for a code to be inputted.

As he met all the required codes the hologram had indicated, a cheerful voice greeted him, "welcome back master!" The brick wall revealed a steel door, that then opened without making much of a sound.

That's very impressive, I thought while entering the room as he indicated me to do with a gesture of his hand, barely visible with the dim blue light of the hologram panel near the door. As I stepped inside the lights turned on, revealing a spacious, organized room. I reviewed carefully the contents inside it as I timidly stepped further into the rustic yet modern looking room. A small bed neatly done was in the furthest wall from the door to the left, beside it was a small bedside table; sitting on top of it was a small half-round white object, like a small crystal ball that was cut in half and then framed with metal at its flat surface. Not recognizing what it was instantly, I ignore it and continue to look around. The wall in front of me was practically replaced by bookshelves, filled with books; not a single space between them and the occasional stack of books here and there on the floor. Now that's a really, impressive collection. Guess he likes books. To my right was a collection of tools of all shapes and sizes, perfectly lined on the wall. Beneath them where tool boxes, perfectly organized by size; I think he's a neat freak. Better I don't touch anything without permission. In front of those boxes where steel tables that formed a half square, leaving only the required space for a person to pass between each table. On top of all the tables, where a lot of what it

seems like computer parts, all scattered about but at the same time in a specific order.

"Sorry for the mess," his apologetic voice startled me out of my room inspection. I turned to look at the mysterious young man that was now reveled by the light.

My breath got caught in my throat as I breathed in sharply. How beautiful. Sky blue eyes, a chestnut color hair; manly, breathtaking features that went well with his light caramel skin and slim, muscular body.

He then stopped looking at the table to look at me and gave a soft chuckle, "you're staring too much."

"I... I’m sorry." I dropped my gaze to the floor feeling as my cheeks heated with embarrassment.

He then walked to the desk that was near the entrance, I hadn't notice that was there. While removing a pearly white earpiece of the size of a peanut from his ear, he spoke in a clear voice, "Sally, where there any casualties while I was gone?" Then removed the same half crystal that was on the night table from his waist belt.

Sally? I looked confused at him. Just then the same cheerful voice spoke, "no master. Everything went as planed!"

"Good. Maintain my form on my room and inform me immediately if someone is heading there." He turned my way while I was busy looking from where in the room the voice was coming from.

"Yes master! Shall I make further preparations to attend to Lady Alida's needs?" I turned to face him at the mention of my name, to my surprise he was looking at me with calm and somewhat relieved and amused expression.

"Please do."

"I'll get right to it then!"

I straighten myself before I spoke, "so... I'm a 'Lady' now?"

He laughed a little but at the same time I perceived a hint of sadness in him, "to her at least."

I crossed my arms, "I don't believe I've had the honor to meet her."

His gaze dropped to the ground for a moment; as he looked back at me he said, "how much do you remember?" A hint of pain and loneliness in his voice, accompanied with a heartbroken expression.

I felt heartbroken myself looking at him but didn't waver in the slightest. Unfolding my arms, I was determined to get the answers that where promised to me, "how about I ask the questions and you give me answers instead?" My voice was playful yet serious now, "I mean, I am a Lady."

He laughed a little, his features now relaxed, "good point." He pointed out the chair behind the desk with his hand, "please have a seat."

I looked at the chair and decided to sit on the bed instead, just to do the contrary of what he indicated. His eyes were watching my every movement as I walked past him. As I neared the bed, I stood in front of the bedside table, looking at the half crystal that was there, curiosity getting the better of me; so, I ask, "what is it?"

"It's hard to explain; to put it simply, I made it to communicate with Sally and with it she can appear and do what she does best." I stared at him, an eyebrow raised, seeking the bluff on his expression, though he was serious.

"Yeah, sure. That makes perfect sense." He smiled at my sarcasm; I felt my heart skip a beat at the sight, if I didn't die in my mother's grasp, I'm pretty sure I'll die here of a heart attack. God, he's too handsome! I felt my cheeks flush a little so I looked away to sit on the bed.

He cleared his throat, "Sally is a fairy," my eyes where wide open at his statement; he continued, "she used to have a physical body but... to my multiple failures at creating a perfect computerized system she offered herself to be the magical core that was needed to stabilize it."

"For what purpose with a living creature do that?"

"To get you out." I swallowed hard, trying to organize my thoughts. "She did it for you," he wore a regretful expression.

Is he confirming my doubts that he was the one that got me out, along with the fairy? If those actually exist. "How did you... Why? I don't even know her or you. I don't understand, why go through all the trouble?" As I stared at him in confusion, he looked away from me, resting against the desk now and looking at his hands.

He sighed, "how much do you remember?"

"First, answer all my questions; that includes the ones I made back at the forest."

He nodded silently; after a moment of careful consideration he began to walk towards the bed and sat beside me. His closeness made me nervous; he looked at me, his eyes searching for something in mine. "Don't be afraid." His voice was serene, yet it felt as deep as the ocean.

"Afraid of what?" My voice was barely a whisper as I felt drawn in by his sky-blue eyes. His pupils now changed vertical like that of a cat.

He placed both of his hands gingerly on either side of my head, my pulse quickened at his touch, spreading heat through my entire body. "Close your eyes and clear your mind. Don't think of anything." His voice was sweet, and it danced like a lullaby in my ears.

He's so close. Even with eyes like that he looks handsome. Regretfully I closed my eyes and gave a small sigh. As I did, I

felt his forehead touch against mine; his breath tickled on my lips as he spoke unknown words barely audible. I wanted to move away but felt frozen in place as my mind started to drift in a dream-like distant memory.

*****

"Who are you talking to?" The boy startled when he heard my voice, turning my way to see who it was. He looked away from me seeming pouty; "well?" I placed my little hands on my small hips and moved to be in his range of sight.

He crossed his arms before speaking, "you shouldn't startle people and then start asking questions right out the bat without greeting properly." His cheeks had a hint of blush in them.

I smiled at him, "you're right." I boldly approached him and hugged him as strong as my little arms could, his body felt sturdy despite his fragile appearance. I looked up at him to find him staring down at me in clear surprise, his rosy cheeks now scarlet red mad me smile even more. "This is when you are supposed to hug me back you know." Timidly he hugged me gently, like embracing a glass figure that might brake if he used too much strength.

Suddenly, a small feminine voice started laughing; "look at you being all shy, master!" We both startle out of each other's arms, "aww, don't stop on my account! It was fun watching my master embarrassed because of a girl!" I looked around me and behind the boy trying to find the source of the voice but couldn't see anyone. "Whoops! Where are my manners! A small creature appeared on the boy's shoulder; "nice to meet you! My name is Sally! I'm a fairy and master's personal slave; I mean attendant!" She corrected that last part in a panic with amusement in her voice.

The boy glared at her from the corner of his eye; "I gave you specific orders to..."

"A fairy?!" The boy was interrupted mid-sentence with my sudden reaction; amassed at the small creature at his shoulder.

To my reaction the fairy gave a broad smile; suddenly she appeared in front of me, now in the size of the average child. Her big eyes where a mixed color of purple, pink and a hint of mint blue; her hair was dark brown with the occasional gold strands that shined with the light of the sun and tawny beige skin; "you're cute, My Lady!"

"Sally don't scare her like that!" The boy pulled her away from me and gave an exasperated sigh as they started to bicker.

*****

The memory faded; not a moment passed when another one appeared.

*****

"Master, are you sure it is wise to give her your fire energy? I mean, I am not against the idea but..." Sally stopped speaking, clear worry on her expression.

"I know, Sally. That's the reason why I want to." The boy looked at me, his expression serious; "what do you think, Alida? Want to be like me?" He waited for my response, but I was too startled by his words; "even if we get locked up and separated, the abilities won't show until your 15th birthday and they won't completely manifest until you're 18. When the time comes that your abilities will start to manifest, I'll go get you."

I looked up at him in wonder; "but won't that leave you without abilities?"

He smiled and patted my head, "no, because my main energy is water not fire. The ones that possess water energy also own fire energy as second but at the age of 15 or before that they have

to give it away, otherwise the overwhelming energy will kill them."

My expression was pained as he finished talking; "I don't want you to die! I'll take it if it means you won't leave me alone, so you have to promise you will come for me."

"Alright. I promise. Remember, if for some reason I stop coming it means I was caught and you should stop coming here, make sure to keep this a secret; when the time comes I'll go get you and take you away with me. Until then, wait for me." My cheeks flushed at his determined words.

"Don't worry about anything, My Lady! Remember, I, the great fairy Sally will be there to assist my master in everything. Success is guaranteed!" Sally wore a confident smile as she declared her statement.

I smiled as the two of them started to bicker.

*****

The memory faded. As it did, the young man pulled away completely. As I felt his warmth leaving me I opened my eyes, meeting his gaze, his pupils now round. "What was that?" My voice was barely a whisper. Was that my memory or his? And how did he do that?

"A memory we shared when we were children." His eyes were searching mine, seeking for something. I felt like he was looking through me.

Surprise and uncertainty now visible on my face as I thought through what it all meant. "You're the boy from all those years ago. Wait...does...does that mean...?" The question didn't leave my mouth as everything was too much for me to process.

He placed his hand on one of my cheeks, his eyes seemed to scream out regret and relief as he rubbed my cheek with his thumb in a way that seemed like he was confirming I was really,

there. "Yes. That was me." He paused for a moment before continuing, "I should have taken you away back then if I would have known that you were going to suffer so much." I could even feel the pain in his voice; "I tried to get you out so many times but failed. It pained me so much every time I saw you on the floor covered in wounds. The only thing I could do was comfort you; I felt useless."

"You mean, the voice I heard in my room, was you?" He didn't respond, his silence confirming my suspicion. After a moment of consideration of what I knew now I placed my hand on top of his as he was beginning to pull away. I tried to speak in a clear voice, "thank you, for coming for me and keeping you're promise." I smiled a little at him, surprise clear on his expression at my words. "I have to ask...did I... was the fire my doing?"

He gently removed his hand from my cheek, gave a thin smile at me and stood from the bed; "you can stay here until we can finish with the preparations to make you disappear from your mother's grasp."

As I notice he was walking towards the steel door we had entered from; "where are you going?"

"I have to go back, otherwise my father will suspect I did something."

Just as I was about to ask for further explanation; "master, mistress Lila just passed with a message saying your father is summoning you to his office."

He gave an exasperated sigh, "very well. I'll leave the rest to you." He then turned my way, "rest up, I'm sure the adrenaline is almost completely out of your system." And then he was gone.

"He didn't even wait for my response, he just stormed out of the room." I said to myself, barely audible, along with a frustrated

sigh. He didn't tell me his name and was avoiding giving too much information for some reason.

As I kept rethinking everything that had happened and was said, Sally spoke; "My Lady, I have prepared a bath for you, along with something for you to eat. Also, I adjusted some clothing to your size; they aren't feminine like I would have liked but guess that will do for now."

I laughed a little, "thank you, Sally."

She giggled, "don't mention it!" Suddenly, a section of the bookshelf that didn't have any stacks of books in front of it, moved away without making more sound than necessary, revealing another room at the other side. "Take all the time you need to clean up, My Lady. Try not to fall asleep in the bath and if you feel light-headed, please step out."

I entered the other room slowly, dumbfounded at the size of it. It's huge! Heck it's the same size as the other room and twice the size of my room.

Sally giggled at my reaction, "My Lady, you are too surprised. You haven't changed one bit!' I felt a little embarrassed now as she continued, "Oh! I almost forgot! Please don't open that white double door, it leads to master's room that is filled with surveillance cameras."

I looked at the door she had mentioned, "alright." My eyes caught a small tray table near the bath filled with small cut fruits; "you prepared all that?"

"Not really. I told the maid on Master's behalf to do it."

"That makes more sense, but I couldn't possibly eat all that." I began to undress.

"Don't worry too much, eat what you can. I understand that you are used to eating that amount in three meals a day. No wonder you're so skinny and pale looking!"

"Gee, thanks a lot." I stepped in the hot water, sweet aromas were mixed in it, its temperature perfect enough to relax my swollen body. "This feels so nice."

"My Lady, may I ask, those scars...was it your mother's doing? If you don’t want to answer, its ok." I could sense pain in her voice as she carefully asked.

I thought about it carefully, "I believe so. I can't be certain; once a week she would erase my memory; like today."

"All of it?!"

I nodded, "all of it except one. I could never forget it. I always forced myself to remember."

"Can you tell me about it?"

"If I do, will you tell me how a beautiful fairy ended up being a computer system?"

She giggled a bit, "you got yourself a deal! I'll have to thank master later for sharing a memory of how I used to be."

"It was the memory of when we first met in the forest, near the flower field. I was about 6 I believe, and I had just moved in with my mother and I think I had sisters; I don't remember them very well. It's kind of hazy now."

"I remember! Master was so adorable! He thought he was seeing things, because in all the years we were here, there wasn't a living soul in that forest, so when he saw you he was surprised. Occasionally, when he wanted to take a break from all the studying and training he would go to that flower field to relax."

"I see." I wonder..., "hey, Sally..."

"If you're wondering how we came to be here, don't. I don't have permission to tell you or anyone. Even master doesn't know all the details of the circumstances."

"Very well. Then, can you tell me, how you ended up like that?"

"Right. You'll understand better if I show you." A hologram of a girl close to my age appeared in the center of the room, her hair long and dark brown with strands of gold, tawny beige skin, eyes that were a mixture of purple, pink and mint blue.

She's beautiful. She looks just like that memory, but taller and more mature. "Is that how you looked before you ended up being a computer?" Sally walked toward me.

"Yes. Now, My Lady, close your eyes and relax. Don't fight the memory." She placed her fingers on my forehead as I closed my eyes, clearing my mind. Just like before, I felt my mind drift in a dream-like memory.

*****

Sally entered the hidden room holding a tray with coffee and a small snack, "Master, you should rest." She looked at him worried as she placed the tray on the desk.

"I can't rest now, Sally. She is suffering in that house, all alone! I'm close to stabilizing the system I need to open all those security coded locks without leaving a trace. I can't stop now." The young man looked like he hadn't slept in days, dark circles had formed under his eyes and clear physical fatigue plagued him.

"And how will you get her out if you are too exhausted to even think or hold steady that screwdriver in your hand that you've been struggling to hold steady to work on that piece ever since I left!" He then slammed the screwdriver on the table, frustrated. "You need to rest. Or at least think things through calmly, maybe you're missing something for it to work, but you're so tired you can't even figure out what it is."

He rubbed his hair and then passed a hand through his face, a gesture of frustration and exhaustion. "You do have a point, Sally. I am missing something but what I can't figure out is how to make it stable; I thought I was close to figure it out."

"Do you mean that core you were trying to create to combine technology with magical energy as its energy source?"

"Yes. If I implant too much of my energy it malfunctions and if I implant less, it just runs out of power with just one command." His fingers were toying with the screw driver he had slammed at the table earlier. "Also, if I feed it my energy constantly to make it stable there's a great chance I'll run out of magic myself and get exposed." He then stopped playing with the screw driver, leaving it at the table as he stood to walk towards the desk where Sally left the tray with the coffee.

She watched as her master drank his coffee while she considered what he said about the program. "What if someone else maintains it stable?"

He placed the cup back on the tray and faced her, his expression grim and knowing, "no."

"Why?! It could work!"

"We don't know how that could end!" He looked at Sally with clear worry in his eyes. "I can't risk my best friend's life." His words carried so much pain with them.

"I understand." She looked down before meeting his gaze once again, "But Master, she is my best friend and I also made a promise, remember? I told her success was guaranteed as long as I was by your side." Her eyes were filled with determination as she held his intense gaze. "Instead of fighting we should figure out a way that this could work. Alida is waiting for us."

After considering what she had proposed, he faced her and finally responded; "the answer is still no, Sally. Don't make me repeat myself." He then left the room through the steel door; leaving Sally behind.

"You stubborn, fool. I won't stay put any longer." She approached a specific piece that apparently was the computer core they were discussing about earlier. "Well, here goes nothing." She picked up the core, "I hope you can forgive me, Master. But you know, I always keep my promises." She chanted a spell; a moment later the core fell to the floor, Sally disappearing within it.

*****

The memory faded. I opened my eyes slowly, finding Sally still near. "What happened after that?"

"I don't know how he reacted after he found the core. I fell into a temporary slumber until Master managed to combine my existence with the computer program he designed. He gave me a long lecture when I woke up." She smiled a little, nostalgia pricked her face.

I was filled with guilt now that I knew what had happened. "I'm sorry..."

"Don't do that to yourself, My Lady, I made my choice and I have no regrets." She smiled at me, making sure I understood that there wasn't a shred of regret. "Now, let’s finish cleaning you up!"