EPISODE TWO: Baxa, the Witch

COREEN

When I opened my eyes, I was astounded by a strange place.

Where am I?

The room looks different from my room, I tilt my head when I saw a painting of a woman in a big portrait. She was beautiful, her curly black hair matches the color of her expressive eyes.

Is this her room? I asked again myself. I try to remember why I ended up in this strange place but my head starts aching.

I looked at the closed door when I heard footsteps approaching where I was. They might have been vampires who wanted to take me away and kill us. I began to panic and get ready for what could happen when the door opens.

Mom! Baxa! I called them in my mind, trying to send some audio message to them but they never answered. I bit my lower lip, although everything is not clear to me, I have to figure out a way to escape from whoever owns the footsteps I hear. I'm still weak and can't fight right now, maybe it's because of what Mom did

All I remembered was I'm in a coffin and it suddenly caught fire that immediately spread all over where the hell I was.

"Oh, my God! You're awake. Mom!"

I heard a woman's voice when the door swung open.

I looked at her and my brows furrowed. She's not a vampire and by looking at her aura and her scent, she's a witch—a-not-weak-but-not-strong-witch. She's wearing a kind of clothes that is not familiar to me. It was too short and showy. Short-sleeves and short, whatever they call it.

"Who are you? Where am I?" I asked while not taking my eyes off the stranger standing at the door

"My name is Pixie. I saved you from the burning old warehouse, last week," she replied and slowly approached her.

"You're a witch, right?"

She was stunned as she approached me, but when she recovered, she smiled and nodded.

"You're Coreen, right?" Pixie assured.

"You know me?" I frowned. How could she know me but I couldn't remember her? I knew every witch from our kingdom but I never encountered someone like her. "And why are you wearing that?" I pointed at the dress that she was wearing.

Pixie was confused and looked at herself, and was enlightened by my question. "Oh, right. You're a thousand years old vampires."

I was stunned and my brows furrowed even more. A what?

"What the hell! A-A thousand years old vampires? I'm only twenty-five!"

"You don't remember anything, do you?" she said in a serious tone.

I don't know how to react, I heave a sigh and try to remember what happened to me . . . someone attacked us, my mother and Baxa put me in a coffin. I heard them talking but I can't move my body at all, and then . . . a-and then . . . f*ck! I can't remember anything after that! "I . . . I don't remember anything." I said and look at her confused.

"Somebody must have blocked your memories." A medium-sized woman with short hair, who wears a sleeveless dress longer than Pixie, came in.

"What? I-I don't understand." I took a deep breath and studied the woman's actions secretly. I already knew that she was also a witch because she has the same scent as Pixie. "And who are you, by the way?"

"I'm Clara, Pixie's mother. Can you tell me, what you remember about yourself?" she sincerely asked as she approached me. She was about to hold me, but I promptly restrained it and gripped her arm tightly.

"What are you doing, witch?" I asked with a sharp look.

I may not remember anything, but that doesn't mean I don't know that some witches want to get me to get on experimenting. This is because the supernatural creatures of my lineage are different from them. I belong to a Supreme Clan called Pureblood Royalties and has a unique ability that only those like us with royal blood can do.

We are maybe vampires, but we are the royal ones! The one always on the top.

"Coreen, calm down. My mom won't hurt you. We are here to help you," Pixie sincerely said as she approached us.

"Why would I trust your mother? She's using dark magic and it ain't going to help me," I said to Pixie without blinking. My eyes were pinning on her, scarring the innocence of her thoughts.

I saw the sudden pallor of the witch's face in front of me, and from the corner of my eyes, Pixie was stunned and surprised by what I said.

"You don't know?" I asked and glanced at her mother.

"That's not true! Mom, tell her it's not true." Pixie whined and turned to her mother.

She shook her head and glanced again at Coreen.

"I may forget my memories but not my senses and abilities. I can sense if someone uses dark magic, like if there are vampires or wolves near me. And your mother—" I paused and pointed to the woman beside me "–is one of those who practice dark magic."

"Mom . . ."

Pixie's mother took a deep breath and then smilingly turned to Pixie before looking back at me. "Yes, I'm using dark magic, but you're wrong if you think that I'm here to hurt you. Someone put a great deal of dark magic to put you in a sleep for a thousand years. And the only way to remove the seal is dark magic as well," she explained.

"How did you know that?" I was still not convinced by her explanation. I let go of her hand and became alert as I prepared myself for a possible resistance to the spell they'll do if their intent is not valid. I'm stronger than them and even if she uses dark magic. She's still a weak kind of witch.

"We met your mother, Cristina twenty-five years ago. She told us about you and why they forced you to be locked in a coffin and slept for over a thousand years," Pixie's mother replied.

"You knew my mother? Where is she?"

Clara took a deep breath. "She saved us from the hands of evil vampires, but after that, our paths never crossed again. We haven't heard from her until now."

I fell into a deep thought. I could not understand myself. I remember my family, but other than that, I remember nothing else.

"I know there are many questions in your mind, right now, but you have to trust us. Maybe your mother know that this day will come, so she saved us then. Your mother is also a pureblood vampire. According to what I've heard, one of her abilities is to see what will happen in the future." She took a deep sigh. "Let us help you," she convinced.

"And do you think you can remove the seal of my memory?" I asked her again, raising an eyebrow. "You're weak, and if you continue using dark magic, you'll lose your life in the process."

I heard Pixie gasp in shock. Even though I didn't want to hurt her, it was better if she'll know what would happen to her mother once she started using dark magic.

"I can channel your power to mine, so that—"

"No!" I stopped Clara from what she was going to say and pushed her away. It was just a simple push, but the woman jumped out of the door.

"Mom!" Pixie panicked and immediately attended to her mother. "What are you doing? We just want to help you!" She shouted at me.

She quickly got up from the bed and coldly looked at Pixie's mother.

"Do you really know your mother? Do you know what it takes in exchange for my memory to come back?" I spoke with no emotion. "She wants to use my power for her gain. Channeling my powers will give her more power, or the worst, she'll be dead in an instant. If her body can't handle the transition. Do you see? I'm a pureblood vampire, and I have a different bloodline from all kinds of supernatural beings, and your clan is included."

Pixie nodded, surprised. "I know my Mommy, and I know she won't do anything wrong. We just want to help you. Can't you just listen to her?"

"I'm thankful for the kindness you have done, but I will not allow you to use me as a tool just for your greedy thoughts. Having a great power can turn everyone's destruction," she said. "Where are my clothes?"

"P-please, stay here. You're not safe outside. We still can't determine who found your hiding place and who wants to take you. Believe me, when the news spread that you have awakened and wandered around, your life will definitely be in danger," said Pixie's mother, who slowly got up.

"Then let them come to me. I'm not afraid of them." I said confidently. She doesn't care about being found because what can they do to her? She's a pureblood vampire, and anyone can't kill her or even touch her.

Pixie's mother shook. "You don't understand the situation. Over time passed all supernatural beings evolved more when your mother gave Baxa a little blood. She became strong, and as time passed, Baxa became greedy and sought more ways to drink the blood of a pureblood vampire. Cristina found out, so she didn't wait for your father to come back and hide it. She's with a witch whom she trusts and who moves you to different places so that Baxa cannot find you."

"Baxa?" she repeated the name that Clara mentioned. A memory suddenly popped into her mind, and she saw a sudden flash of memories in her mind.

"No! I won't let—ahh!"

The stinging pain that I feel doubled. I saw my mom's good friend, a powerful witch, blurting out an oration unknown to me.

"Baxa, s-stop it," she pleaded, but it seemed like she did not hear me and went on reciting the oration.

"This is for your own good, Coreen," she said in between declamation. "You need to survive. You are the only hope of the vampires."

My mom firmly held me to stop me from doing anything. Our eyes met and I cannot comprehend my mom's intention. Why do I need to live and survive? Why do they have to force me to sleep and detain me in a coffin? To hide from the other vampires, why?

"W-We love you, Coreen." I saw an unfamiliar sadness in my mother's eyes. "Time will come. You will understand everything that we are doing f-for you."

I unattentively shrugged, and in no minute, I quickly threw the knife at Baxa. An unacquainted dread slowly consumed her as she realized what just happened. I-I'm sorry, Baxa. I didn't mean to–

"Baxa!" my mother shouted, still tightly holding me.

"She's too strong, and you need to do it, Cristina!" Baxa commanded. "Do it while everything is still under control!"

"I remember her." I blurted. "She's my mom's best friend."

She was the first supernatural being–a witch–who possessed a pureblood!