THE MISSING EMPEROR ~ The Elemental Seven Book I

THE BROKEN CHILD - Hope Schefers Backstory

"Tch! What a pain!" The girl shook the chains that bound her to her friend who is a foot taller than her. They were marching alongside a massive group of people, all bound by chains hands and feet, being forced by guards to keep moving though barefoot. It was a desert-like place, dry and crumbly. "If a butterfly was to fly through here," the short child breathed, her brown hair pulled into a braid, "Its wings would crumble into little pieces." The tall one, who seemed to be a bit older, shook her head and snorted. "Psh! Luvalyn, grow up! Butterflies can't just crumble unless they're smashed!" "Why so violent, Hope?" Luvalyn shyly scolded. Hope kicked the dust as she walked, stirring up dirt. "I wanna go home! We have been walking for so long... a year?" she groaned. "Two months," Luvalyn corrected, "And you seem to be suffering the least, so no complaining." "Not true! One of the guards sliced my face with his knife a week ago," Hope hissed. Luvalyn knew it was because Hope had been taunting him. She was bossy and kind of harsh, but she protected Luvalyn like a sister.

The two girls, along with many hundred other children and adults, had been taken from their home in Afaneis Nycht and were forced to go into a new province to be sold as slaves. Luvalyn knew Hope was still getting used to the idea that she will be sold to slavery, while Luvalyn herself had gotten numb to the fact. It was a dangerous walk across the desert-like terrain. Little water, lack of food, no shoes, and slave-traders with tempers and whips made it even more difficult to keep going.

"Hey, hey! Luvly!" Hope whispered, "Look! A scorpion!" Luvalyn jumped a foot despite her chains, and let out a frightened howl. Hope cracked up giggling. Sadist, Luvalyn thought, irritated. "Keep moving!" One of the guards roared. Hope shot back a response using some not-so-nice words that a 14-year-old should not really know and say. Luvalyn saw the scorpion in the corner of her eye. The large bug inched toward the guard who roared. Before she could say anything, it sprung. The guard shook a little as it crawled up his leg, then onto his shirt going to his neck. He moaned in fear but it was too late, everyone watching knew. Luvalyn turned her eyes as the guard screamed in pain and with a thud, the slave trader fell to the ground. Everyone looked at the man, horrified. "Out of the way! Out of the way! Move!" Another slave trader shouted as he pushed his way through the crowd. He kneeled to look at the man on the ground and checked on him. He saw the scorpion, and as it was running away from the dead man's neck, he stomped on it. "Tch! Can't do anything about it. Orvod's dead. Well, just leave him. Now keep going!" And the crowd resumed marching. Only when Luvalyn felt Hope moving did she looked. Hope pulled the hat off the dead guard's head and said, "Oh look, Luvly. Now you won't get sunburn." She tossed the hat onto the younger girl's head.

"H-Hope, h-he just..."

"He got what he deserved. Don't sweat it."

For the past two months that they had been walking side by side, Luvalyn realized Hope's parents had been lost in the crowd. Hope didn't seem to mind. She just entertained herself by picking on the other guards and teasing them, thus the scratches on her face and Luvalyn's black eye. Luvalyn herself had lost her parents at the beginning of the march when they stumbled into a snake pit. Hope literally had to carry her away from the pit or she would have jumped in as well out of pure grief.

"Does that mean I owe her my life?" Luvalyn whispered to herself. Hope certainly had a rough exterior, harder than anyone else she knew, but she had risked the scorpion to get Luvalyn the hat. "Did you say something, midget?" Hope raised a brow. Luvalyn shook her head. Hope rolled her eyes. Then, for just a second, Luvalyn saw a pain jerk across Hope's face. She had seen her get hurt and cut, got lost from her parents, but she never shown any sign of pain. "What's wrong?" Luvalyn gasped. Hope did not answer but there was a grim expression on her face. She just urged Luvalyn to keep moving. "Were you bit? Did the scorpion get on your clothes?" she asked Hope question after question but the tall girl stayed quiet. Only when Luvalyn looked at Hope's feet did she notice. From constant walking and barely any rest, her feet were swollen, bloody and cracked. The heels' skin had come off, leaving a bloodstained lump of flesh in the dirt. Luvalyn yelped. "That must hurt something awful. We need to do something about it!" Luvalyn tried to get Hope to stop walking, but stubborn Hope refused to halt. "Keep walking!" She hissed, "Keep walking or they'll beat you up!" Luvalyn shook a little and nodded, treading on almost faithfully, after Hope.

Both of them met when they were younger in Afaneis Nycht. They both went to the same school, where Luvalyn had seen Hope in the music room every day. She excelled so well in piano, flute, saxophone, clarinet, and pretty much everything else, that the teacher had her work as a classroom aid. Even then, Hope had intimidated Luvalyn. However, Hope had sort of taken Luvalyn under her wing. Whenever one of the annoying boys in Luvalyn's class had stolen her tambourine, Hope would twist their ear or sock them on the shoulder. It sounded cruel, but that was just how children survived in Afaneis Nycht.

"Dinner!" The guards bellowed, to get the attention of as many of the slaves as they could.

Luvalyn took advantage of the break from walking to tear off a portion of her skirt to patch up Hope's feet. "There! That should be better!" Luvalyn felt a bit of pride. She had always wanted to be a doctor in Afaneis Nycht. Maybe she could get an apprenticeship in the new province they were going to, at least that's what she hoped. "It still hurts," Hope complained, her mouth full of the stale bread that was supper, "But I guess it is better than nothing. Thank you, I guess." Luvalyn blushed. "It was nothing!" She beamed, finally getting Hope's good side out. Hope snorted. "Don't get so happy about it. It'll probably still get infected," she laughed. Luvalyn realized she was right. "That's true. She needs proper medical attention. Her feet could still catch dirt." Luvalyn thought and began to worry. "Goodness, Luvalyn! Don't fret," Hope cracked up, "I'll live a bit longer. Why, you need someone to take care of you?" Luvalyn winced. She was always the weaker one.

Three years passed. The slaves had reached the country and were sold to noble families.

"Hmm... Her spirit isn't going to be crushed easily, Miss Petra," a worker said. "Untie me! Untie me or I will destroy you! I will crush your bones and spill your blood!" Hope screamed while she lunges through her straitjacket. "The brand. Brand her face." Petra ordered the worker. "Yes, ma'am." the worker replied and he shoved a diamond-shaped brand under Hope's left eye. Hope screamed so loud, tears streamed down her face. "AGH! STOP! AGH! AAH! It hurts Luvly! Luvly, watch over me now, please." The worker pulls the brand away, leaving a mark on Hope's face. "It's no use," the worker said. "It's still not enough to silence this girl, I can tell. She is far too strong for her own good. Put the stone on her eye. With only one eye, she can only see half the world." Petra said. "But, ma'am, that's plain cruelty." the worker said. Hope moans in pain. "Do it." Petra ordered. The worker, unable to refuse his mistress' order, shoved the stone brand into Hope's right eye. Hope screamed. "She'll never be the same person." Petra said and briskly walked away. The worker looks at Petra and secretly removed the brand from Hope's eye. "I'm so sorry," he muttered and followed Petra.

Hope fell limp on the floor. "Luvly... Luvly... Now I am glad you drowned in the river. You... you didn't have to suffer like this, to see me... like this." Hope said.

Then she started giggling.

"Oh, Luvly, if you could see me now! I am so ugly. My hair is cut, my face is scarred. Oh, if only you could see me! But don't worry Luvly, I'll never stop smiling! I will always smile and pretend I was you, pretend I was a younger happy child! I will always make things fun. I'll never fight again!" Then she starts laughing like a maniac.

A year after...

"Put her in the bed." Charles said. Barry lifts Hope's body into the small bed. "Do you think she'll survive?" he asked. Charles shrugged and looked away. "What possessed you to buy a broken girl anyway?" Barry asked. "She's sick, both mentally and physically. Her old master worked her past rescuing," he said looking at Hope with more distaste than pity. "She deserves to die in peace." Charles replied. "She must have been pretty when she didn't have those scars." Charles stroke Hope's cheek. She opened her eyes. "Lu-Luvalyn?" she whisper. "No." Barry replied. "I'm Barry. I am a servant at Master Charles' house. You will like it here!" he gently touched her face. "You were bought from Miss Petra's home. Just relax and focus on healing, okay?" he said. "No... Luvly. It's too late." Hope said coughing. "Please..."

Charles leans closer to Hope. "I think... her dying words," he told Barry. "Child?" Barry sniffs.

"Tell the world. I'm fading away now, but I shall rise." Hope said. "My spirit... shall rise. Not until I have saved someone will my spirit falter. Not until I have protected someone like I tried protecting Luvalyn." Hope said. "I will not go into the ground! Hades can swallow my body, but my breath, my spirit... will linger," she said firmly. "What?" Barry said confused. Charles grunted and said, "She means until she saves someone's life, her spirit will still haunt the Earth." Barry nodded and said "O-oh." slightly alarmed.

"T-Tell the world... I will... someday, I will fight." Hope said faintly and her eyes slowly close.

Many years had passed...