Seeking Revenge

PROLOGUE

I sat up in bed, my mind still foggy from sleep. Loud banging at the front door drew my attention. It grew more forceful by the second. I was frozen; petrified. 

Someone was trying to break in.

But the banging stopped. Like the calm before a storm, all was quiet. Then the door exploded with an enormous crack. Shouting and chaos filled the house. It was all I could do to fight the darkness at the edge of my vision, taking deep breaths and staring wide-eyed at the flashes of light coming from under my bedroom door. The shouts and explosions of magic carried on for seconds that felt like an eternity... until ear-splitting screams erupted from the living room. My heart dropped to the floor when I realized the screams were coming from my parents. 

It wasn't long after that I smelled smoke in the air. I shrieked as my door burst into white-hot flames. My parents' screams were no more, and foreign shouts took over as the intruders' footsteps thundered out of the house.

Now that the threat was gone, I snapped out of my daze. "Mom! Dad!" I cried. There was no answer. Tears sprang to my eyes as the blistering heat seared the skin on the bottoms of my feet. I ran through the flames, the crook of my arm hugging my mouth. I barely made it out of my room before it crashed in on itself, billowing smoke. The ashes seared holes in my nightgown.

By some miracle, I made it to the living room where my parents were lying motionless on the ground. Their bodies were a mangled, bloody sight that have haunted my dreams to this day. A sob escaped me, tears only making it halfway down my cheeks before evaporating. They were still conscious, so I knelt beside them, holding back a cry of pain from the scorching floorboards.

"Mom, Dad, come on! We have to get out of here!" I yelled over the roaring flames.

But they didn't listen. "Ksenia, sweetie, it's too late for us. You must save yourself," Mom told me. Despite the situation, she was oddly calm; though, sadness still reflected in her eyes.

"But-"

"We can't go with you, Ksenia," Dad confirmed, tears in his eyes. "So listen carefully.

"From this point on, your life will change forever. The Council will always be looking for you. They will send Warriors after you, so remember the self-defense and survival skills we've taught you, and continue to learn. But most importantly-"

There was another crack. As I looked up, part of the ceiling fell right behind me, missing by inches. It was a surprise my nightgown hadn't melted off yet.

"Most importantly," Dad continued, taking my hand in what was left of his, "learn to control your magic and never use it unless absolutely necessary. Do you understand?"

I wasn't sure whether I did or not, but I nodded nonetheless. I looked from him to Mom, and she made a feeble gesture in agreement. Part of me wanted to burn along with them, not knowing how I, a mere thirteen-year-old, was supposed to survive without them. But another part of me was too cowardly to accept that fate.

"I love you," I choked out, and pulled my hand from Dad's bloody grasp.

And I ran.

I ran until my blistered feet could carry me no further and my lungs were about to explode. Finally, I collapsed on top of a hill overlooking my village and emptied my stomach. My home, once a breathtaking oak cabin, was now nothing more than a pile of ashes and rubble. Smoke was still rising above it, twisting and curling before dissipating in the early morning breeze.

There was a little crowd now, which had gathered around the disaster. Among them were Warriors, the Council's personal soldiers, keeping them at a distance. Other Warriors were in the wreckage, surveying the damage. A couple of them pulled out Mom and Dad's corpses. But they were still searching for something more.

Something Dad had told me came to mind: "The Council will always be looking for you.... They will send Warriors after you...."

Then, I realized two things: The Warriors were looking for me in the rubble....

And the Fae Council killed my parents.