IN ANOTHER LIFE , josie saltzman ✔️

51. Eternal Darkness

A/N: There are multiple mentions of suicide and suicidal thoughts so please tread carefully or skip the entire chapter entirely if you find those topics triggering. Prioritize yourself, please. 

„I'm back!" My voice echoed throughout the first floor of the castle and I tilted my head to the side when I got no response. I walked along the halls and one of the first things I noticed were one, how dark the hallway was and second, how there was no heartbeat to hear for miles.
„You're not the only one, darling." A male voice suddenly erupted behind me and I turned around to see the hallway being lit up by the sun.
„What is going on here?" I stepped forward as he stepped out of the shadows. Cassius. I recognized him immediately despite never having seen him before. He was tall, I assumed at least around 6'3. For a mass murderer and psychopath, he had a nice face. His almond eyes were dark and framed by long, dark brown lashes. They twinkled dangerously and I could see that he harbored an immense hatred for something or somebody. Maybe even me. He looked as though he just came back from the dead, or in this case, from an insane long sleep. But the rest of his face was calm, the only thing betraying what he felt were his eyes but even that he mastered quickly again and so even those were left blank without showing an emotion. It was as though he had no soul and I believed that. His full pink lips were a straight line and there was not a single crease in his forehead. His pasty looking skin repaired itself quickly and now he showed no signs of ever having been even a little bit powerless. His black hair was patted with sweat and rain but combed back neatly. He wore a dark coat over black clothes.
„It is so nice to finally meet you in person. And I heard what your mother has done to you. Surely, there are ways in which you want to see her in pain." His voice as before was rich and calm and pleasant and deep. He talked to me the way a friend or even someone more intimate to me would talk. He was so certain of himself that I had trouble thinking straight.
„N-No." I shook my head before I lifted it. „No. What she did is unforgivable but I would not want her in pain."
Then, he stood before me without having moved his eyes from mine. „Sure you do. Or did she not keep you from being your true self over and over again? Hurt you intentionally over and over again? Make you want to kill yourself?" He kept his calm voice. It was hard not to agree. Almost everything about seemed like you'd want to give into him. Now I understood why Rose couldn't see through him before it was too late. But he was not the first man in my life who was cunning and manipulative and a bastard.
I pushed myself away, turned away from him and looked down at my hands which had dark lines drawn all over. I closed my eyes and breathed. „Where are they?" I asked and he stepped closer to me. I could see his breath at my neck and he whispered, „You should hurry. They're in the throne room."
And then I ran. I didn't use my supernatural speed, didn't think of it until I reached those white double doors.
„Sophia!?" It was the first name I thought of, and when the realization hit me, I was almost ashamed that I thought of her first and not my mother.
Pushing the doors open with a bang when they collided into the walls, I saw them sitting at the table and talking. They looked almost happy.
Then it hit me. They didn't know. Couldn't have known or otherwise, they would not look as carefree or happy as they did in that moment. Ruby, Astoria, Sophia, James and my mother sat at the table.
Cassius was gone by now, I was certain of it.
„I need to speak to my mother. Alone, please."
„Amaya, what is it? Are you okay?" Sophia asked as she lifted herself from the chair as everyone else did.
„No, I'm not. Apparently I never been. Just, please, go." One by one left, but not without looking at me worriedly.
„Amaya-"
„Stop!" I shouted as soon as the door was closed.
„I am asking only one time. Did you or did you not link my magic to Hope so that when she died and became a tribrid that only then I could fully activate all three parts of me?" My voice didn't waver, didn't shake. I sounded stern and confident but also angry. So angry.
She stood up and immediately stepped away from me. „I did." She whispered.
Scoffing, I turned around and put my hands to my face before my heartbeat as well as my breathing increased.
„It was never about losing my revilas side." I whispered and turned back around to her. „Was it?"
„No, it was not." The dark lines reached my elbows. „Of course, it wasn't." I shook my head and looked away to the still glimmering fairy lights outside. I turned my eyes back on her.
„Do you really hate your own daughter so much?" I asked and raised my voice again.
„I don't hate you." she said.
„But you do. You left me in Sophia's care when I was a baby and then after I went back to Earth to be with my family, you left and chose Meridial over us, over me. And then you made me think there was something seriously wrong with me!" I yelled and stepped back, surprised by my own honesty.
„You overloaded my magic and made me unleash it every time it became too much. I could've died. I almost died." I cried and only realized now that my cheeks were hot and wet at the same time.
„And so often when I came to you for help, you chose Meridial over your hurting daughter. I needed you as my mother but you not only turned your back on your husband and me, no, the whole time, three quarters of my life, it was you who added to my magic so that I was left with an immense pain that I not only tried ending my life several times, no, I became a sapphire addict. And you never cared."
She walked up to me and looked into my eyes.
„I've only wanted you to be strong."
I laughed bitterly and rolled my eyes. „I am strong. And I am powerful. But I am still a child, your child. And you should've never allowed for me to become suicidal and an addict. But you did."
„And the only one who was helping me was Dad. The only who least understood what was going on with me."
„I had no idea what I was doing could be harmful to you. I never thought-"
„No, you didn't. You never thought to look back and see what happened to the people you supposedly loved. Not when Dad died. Not when I killed myself and not when I got addicted to something that is harmful for all revilas. You never cared. Why?" I told her and she stepped away. She turned around and looked up to her throne. God, how much I hated that seat.
„I loved your father. And he loved me. And when he died, I almost died with him but it was that duty that kept me alive."
„And there it is. Your duty. What about me? And Hope? Because after Dad died, I was gone two months because I turned dark. Because I couldn't handle it. And Hayley was gone, too. Hope was grieving the loss of both her parents. I had no one to talk to me. And the worst thing is, you could've easily taken care of the Hollow. Why didn't you?"
She turned around to me and her eyes were glowing green.
„You think it is all so easy, huh? Taking the Hollow to Alpha and poof, it's gone, right?"
„Why not? Worked in another life." I told her and she gasped before shaking her head. The green in her eyes dissolved until the only thing that was left were her brown eyes.
„Sophia's not the only who knows about other universes, but that really is besides the point. You didn't take the Hollow out of them because you knew and what, it was a stone event? It was supposed to happen?"
„I wasn't there because I couldn't come back like this!" She cried out.
„I couldn't handle the fact that my husband was dying. Just like I can't handle speaking his name or thinking about our memories. Because if I did, I would die."
„And as for you, I did not push you to inject yourself with sapphire. You did that on your own."
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
„Why did you link my magic to Hope's life? What could possibly be the reason that you would again put me through such a thing?"
„Amaya, you're not stupid. Think. A revilas wielding an earth witch's powers along with the abilities of a vampire with an thirst for blood and the ability to transform into a wolf? You would be unstoppable. Things like sapphire or even the elders would have no longer an effect on you. And besides, you're already using ground magic. An art that Rose created. Rose who died five hundred years ago, not long after successfully becoming the first revilas to not be influenced by the elders."
„So what? So I am the tribrid! You should've thought about that before you became pregnant by an Original! I am not to blame for my heritage."
„Do you have any idea what you are, what you can do? I had to keep your powers bound somehow!" She shouted.
„I live on Earth and you're here. And now with the portal bridge closed, you never would have to worry about me if you just stopped messing with my powers. But you couldn't. My powers belong to me and me only." I shouted back.
There was a loud crash in the sky and suddenly it was thundering again, just like earlier.
„Do you not care about what you could possibly do?"
„I worry about the extent of my powers every day. But that does not give you the right to manipulate and abuse me because you decide I could be unstoppable. And maybe I am, now that my powers are no longer bound. But I will no longer worry about that here. I'm going home." With that, I turned around to the doors.
Then, several things happened. The doors opened and Cassius with a hand wrapped around Rose's arm stood in the doorway and my mother suddenly was infront of me and pushed me back. Momentarily, I flew through the air before I was caught by Ruby.
In another moment passed, Sophia stood next to my mother, a hand wrapped around her upper arm, holding her behind her protectively.
Ruby set me down and looked me up and down.
„Nice dress." She said and smirked before she let go of me.
„Amaya, I am disappointed but there will be other opportunities later. Darling, if you will." The latter sentence, he spoke to Rose. When she refused, he violently pushed her infront of him and held her left arm into the air while she shook her head.
    „You're hurting her. Please." Sophia pleaded.
    But not much later, Rose's eyes gleamed golden and her hand that was in Cassius' grasp produced a golden ball of magic.
    She mumbled a strange word under her breath and then Cassius let go of her and began to stumble back.
    Rose's golden eyes met mine and she yelled, „RUN!"
    Ruby took my hand and she pulled me after her towards the balcony.
    „Ruby! Ruby, that's not the exit. That's not the-"
    She jumped and pulled me with her and I had no choice but to jump after her.
    Opening a portal, I could only see the green crystals before we emerged on the other side, rolling on grass.