The Light of Aliciant(Book 1)

Chapter 2/Gale

Jade woke up, gasping. Her head pounded with pain from an awful head ache. She scooted up against the wall and sat up, rubbing her forehead.
She was still in the corridor where Miss Rose had knocked her out.. Or something like that. But now she was alone. Where has Miss Rose gone?
Jade thought back on what had happened. First, they were just walking, but Jade started to realize the problems with the situation. Then Jade had asked for the truth, after that Miss Rose had done some kind of dark magic or spell on her.
If anything had happened after that, Jade didn't remember.
She didn't know how long it had been, maybe an hour? Half hour? Jade couldn't tell because it was still dark like it was when she was last conscious.
Jade groaned. 'Well this is just great.' She thought. Slowly she stood up, careful not to go too fast due to her head.
As soon as she was on her feet again, she started walking. First, just slow, and cautious, but as she went on her pace quickened, not purposely but because she didn't know where she was. She had never been to this part of the castle. It was all foreign and new, the lack of windows and people. And if there was no one there, how was she supposed to find her way out of there? She didn't know her way around this part!
But she was out of luck.
Because here, it was just Jade.
As Jade kept walking, an image kept appearing in her head, she couldn't keep it away. It was the image of the tapestry a while back in the halls. Of the angel holding the glimmering jade in her hands. The beautiful gem hung on that silver chain wrapped around the guardians neck. But she knew it could have just been a coincidence, surely it wasn't a tapestry of her.
Even though the angel looked like her.
It was a spinning image of Jade, the same long, wild black-brown hair, and eyes the exact hue of green that the gem in her hands held.
Even the shape and set up of her face was identical, small nose and cheek bones exactly alike. They had the same long eyelashes, and pale pink lips.
Jade didn't know how, but the blankness behind the angel was a starless night sky, even though it had no hints of being one.
Jade stopped. She leaned against the stone wall beside her, knowing that if she didn't, she'd fall over. How was the angel her? How could it be? She didn't even believe in angels, much less being one.
The world was spinning, Jade's mind was whirling with questions and confusion and longing for answers.
'Me? A picture of me as an angel on a wall inside a foreign castle?' Jade thought to herself. It couldn't be. It just wasn't possible.
Jade took a deep breath and took a step forward. She nearly fell over and had to put her hand back on the wall to steady herself again. She kept like that as she walked along the dim corridor as she tried to wrap her brain around the angel tapestry.
She tried to make herself feel better by saying she was just going crazy or it was just a coincidence, but it just didn't seem right, she couldn't tell herself that, and believe it.
Jade gasped and clasped her hand over her mouth. She stood there, motionless, staring at the dark, stained stone floor. The liquid looked wet, like it was just recent where something happened.
Slowly Jade her way to the small pool of the stuff and got down on her knees in front of it. She cautiously stuck her hand out and put her fingertips in the liquid.
Jade took her shaking hands away from the floor and looked at her wet fingers. They were painted with a deep red color.
Jade was right. It was blood.
She screamed and took a few steps back, wiping the blood off her fingers and spreading it on the wall. She turned, grabbed her dress in one hand and started running. She was gonna get as far from that side of the castle as she could without stopping.
Suddenly she heard footsteps behind her. She slowed her pace only a fraction and turned to see who was there. But all she could see was a shadowy silhouette of a human, gaining quickly.
"Hey!" Someone shouted, it sounded like a male.
Jade grunted and ran faster. Silently she cursed herself for screaming, of course someone was gonna hear her.
Up ahead Jade saw a corridor breaking off to the left. She didn't know if it was there before, but it didn't matter at the moment.
She hurried off toward the hall and turned, only to find a dead end with a heavy wooden door at the end, bolted with huge metal hinges. Jade groaned and ran forward.
When she reached the door she grabbed hold of the handle and pulled. She pulled with all her might, but it wouldn't budge.
"Come on,"she whispered. "Come on," but she was too late. Her pursuer had already reached her.
Jade whirled and pressed back against the door. She was breathing hard, due to running and fear. She let her dress skirt fall from her hand.
The person was walking slowly towards her, every footstep like a slow heartbeat that made Jade's heartbeat go faster. "You," he said. "You're a fast one."
"Please," she pleaded. "Please don't hurt me, I haven't done a thing, I-" the other person cut her off. He was chuckling, she wasn't sure if it was to himself or just laughing in general.
"Hurt you? Now why, would I ever do that?" He was still walking towards her, but now he held a long, shining knife in his hand. "You are only a demon," he said.
"A demon? Why I have no idea what your talking about please-" he was right in front of her, almost close enough where she could feel his breath.
He paused, and gave her the wickedest grin she could imagine, then quietly, almost too quiet to hear, he whispered; "Bye bye," and he drove the knife down at her chest.

Jade yelped and ducked under him, avoiding his attempt to kill her.
She whirled up and appeared up behind him, breathing harder than before.
He had drove the blade into the wooden door, but that wasn't what he wanted.
He wanted Jade.
Dryly he chuckled again. "Faster than I thought," he mumbled. He pulled the blade out of the door and turned around, but Jade threw her fist out and hit him in the face, her knuckles colliding with the side of his mouth.
He was taken aback and held his hand on his mouth, when he took it away, he had blood smudged on his face, more oozing out of the split lip he had.
He smiled, letting more blood flow.
"Congratulations, you didn't miss! How does that feel?" He said as he threw his arm out, looking to stab her again, but she caught his wrist, and defended it.
Jade knew she probably looked as shocked as he did, but she didn't have time to pause and think about things. She was about to be killed.
Suddenly her other hand flew up, it was like it wasn't her controlling her body, like someone else was doing it for her. She was never taught any of this kind of stuff.
Jade's hand grabbed the boy's same wrist as her other hand and she twisted it, the boy cried out in pain, letting the blade drop from his grasp.
"I don't know, how does it feel to actually miss?" She replied sharply, plucking the knife from the floor, now it was in her grasp.
The boy grinned again and pulled another knife out of his belt.
"Different, I'll admit," he scrunched his face up, as in he was thinking hard.
Jade chuckled.
"Not the greatest time to be thinking like that," she said and took a shot with the knife in her hand, but he blocked it with his own.
"Not the greatest time be having a conversation, either, but we're both doing it," he grunted and spun around, whipping the blade around with him and cut her forearm.
Jade cried out and stepped back, away from her opponent, nearly falling because of Her dress.
She dropped the blade and held her arm, the blood flowed and stained her sleeve, making it darker than it already was.
The boy laughed and advanced on her, she stumbled over the knife on the ground and fell.
She looked up at the boys eyes, they were dark and full of pride, he was thinking that this was the end of it. He was thinking that he won.
Jade put her back against the wall behind her.
"Please, please don't do this. You don't have to-" suddenly the boy's face changed. Now he looked scared, he looked like he was defeated.
"You," he said. "You.. You're not a demon," he put the blade back in his belt and walked towards Jade.
"No," she said. "No, please stay away from me," she pleaded.
The boy looked hurt, but he backed off.
"I'm- I'm sorry.. I had just assumed that-" Jade cut him off.
"That's alright. Don't.. Just don't," she hissed.
The other guy sighed, and walked towards Jade again, but she scooted away from him. He paused then he padded over to her again and knelt down in front of her. She looked down at the floor, at her blue dress sprawled all over the place.
"Here, let me help you," he took her arm and pulled it towards him. She struggled against him, but his grip was strong.
"Please, just let me help you, it's the least I can do," he asked.
"How does one go from killing, to healing, so quickly?" She asked viciously.
"Because I realized something very important when I cut your arm," he replied.
"Yeah? What's that, that I bleed?" She hissed.
"No, you didn't burn," he looked at her and held up the dagger. "This, this burns demons," he said. "Now let me heal you."
The boy breathed out and Jade held her breath, then she closed her eyes. She didn't want to watch whatever he was gonna do to her.
The boy started mumbling in a language that she couldn't understand, then her arm started to tingle.
Jade gasped. The boy paused, then he continued speaking.
She could feel the skin on her arm near her cut morphing, then it was over. The boy stopped chanting.
Jade opened her eyes. "What- what was that? Who are you?" She stuttered, utterly confused.
He answered her softly. "You wouldn't understand," he said. Jade stared at him. His eyes were like a hazel, but more of a green than brown. They were different, and beautiful, with his orange hair hanging down over his forehead.
"Wouldn't understand what? What you just did? Then yes, you're right. But can't I at least now the name of the person who tried to kill me?" She hissed.
"In my defense, I thought you were a demon! I had just killed two in the same castle I suspected that you'd be a third!" He shouted back.
"There's that again!" She yelled. Demons! And you kill these things? I'm sorry but-"
"Gale," he said.
She paused. "Excuse me?"
"Gale, my name. It's Gale Witherstone," he told her.
"O-oh," she looked at him. "Well," Jade said. "I'm Jade Grey," she was confused, they were just yelling then he seemed to calm down after, in a matter of seconds.
Gale smiled. "Well, hello, Miss Grey," he stood up and held out his hand to help her.
But she didn't take it, she got up on her own. He shrugged. "So, we'll be on our way then?"
"Oh no, Mr. Witherstone, you've got a lot of explaining to do before we go anywhere," she crossed her arms over her chest.
Gale sighed. "Alright," he said. "I guess you do deserve one after almost being killed and all," he grinned at her. But she didn't smile back....