Dragoned in Half

Peace in Darkness-Julia

  I am in a war with my own body as I try to get it to move. All my life I have had to fight to hold on to who I am and as long as there is breath in my body I will not let someone dictate my path for me. The burning sensation from whatever I was stuck with has all but disappeared but with it went everything else but my vision. However, the vision I have is just it. Its like the black concoction was able to stop even the smallest of muscle movements.
 
  Inside I panic as I am dragged across the floor. I stare openly at what I see until a shadow cast over my vision. I try even harder to get my body to respond but cant even make a finger twitch. Something bad is about to happen I just know it. I want to meet the gaze of Jefferson and let him know that I am going to be okay. However, it feels like I will never get that opportunity again.
 
  As my vision moves more, the face of Morbius comes into view. I try hard as I try to decipher his expression. I would say that he looks almost sad but that just can't be right. He leans closer to me and I freeze as  hope that I do not feel his kiss. I may have kissed his dragon willingly but I can tell that Apollo is not present. His lips move slowly in front of my face as I read them. "For this I am sorry little one. May Kawa greet you with open arms".
 
  I frown from inside my immobile body as I wonder why he would possibly say that. Who is he talking about? When he disappears from my vision, I wait for him to come back but he doesn't. A pain strikes in my neck that is all encompassing. I scream as my vision starts to swim. The pain started for just a brief moment but I can now feel it everywhere. I have never felt anything like this. Just as I think that it will never end and I am going to die, it all stops.
 
  When my eyes adjust to the lighting in the room, the first thing I notice is that I can move again. I test each limb on reflex as I take a look around the room. It appears that I am still in the room of the facility but I see no one else. As I walk around the room I realize that its warmer than it was. Searching the room for any differences, it then that I finally see it. There is now a fireplace glowing brightly. As I watch the flames the oddest sense of peace comes over me. It's the most beautiful fire that I have ever seen.
 
  My feet move of their own accord as they take me closer to it. My hand reaches out to the flames and its almost as if they jump to greet me like an old friend. I can feel the heat of the flame as they barely flick across my hand but I remain unafraid. It almost feels like the voice of a friend telling me that it will not hurt me.  instinctively as my hand touches the fire and I feel its pain I snatch it away as a yelp leaves my lips.
 
  A hand landing on my shoulder scares me and my feet lift off of the ground as I jump. I whirl around to find an older looking woman of Asian descent that was not there before. Her gaze is kind as I step away from her and my moves around the room warily. Just as I see the door that she must have come from instantly disappears from view.  Looking at the flames and then at the spot where the door disappeared from a laugh bubbles up in my chest. Whatever they did to me in that lab must really be getting to me.
 
  "You are here to early young Julia. This is a dangerous and delicate thing to behold. However, you must still make the journey if you are to survive. " She states as she turns away from me. I stare at the older women in shock as she states my name.
 
  "Wait, who are you?" I ask her as I remain where I stand. She turns toward me as a door appears behind her.
 
  "I am the creator of your mates known as Kawa. The place where you are is in your connection to them. You can either die here or find a way through. It is up to you". My feet move fast as I follow her through the door. Before I pass through it though I cant help but to look at the flame that grows dimmer and dimmer the further that I get away from it. The room that we walk into is so dark that I can barely see two feet in front of me. If it weren't for the odd dress that is a bright blue that she wears, I would have been lost as I fumbled in the dark.
 
  "So, tell me human, what do you think?" She ask as she finally stops and gestures around the room.
 
  "Well, let me see. I think that this happens to be one of the weirdest dreams I have ever has and that I am in some type of drug induced coma. If that's the case then I would wish someone would tell me how to turn on the lights because I can't bloody see. What the heck is the point of this anyway?" I ask her dead pan.
 
  A laugh from the old woman causes me to roll my eyes. Of course she would find this funny. I turn around and look for the door to exit as she speaks. "You are a feisty one. You will certainly keep the yellow twins on their toes. I do believe that this is a good match" she states. I look her direction with an incredulous expression that she could think that. This lady must be off her rocker.
 
  "I am not off my rocker as you say. Now let us begin" She claps her hand and once more the fireplace from the other room appears. As I look at it, I can tell that it is the same fireplace but this one seems to have been damaged. The bricks on the outside are falling apart or already on the ground. The flame within is so small that it is nearly nonexistent. It does still hold the same appeal to me however as I step forward. I swear that the closer I get to it the more it glows as if its calling to me.
 
  "This is how you see him, is it not?" She ask. I look in her direction as I wonder who she is talking about. She looks at me as if she can see every thought as it passes through my mind. The conversation that I had with my best friend plays in my mind and I remember what she told me about her experience in the soul bond. Then I get well and truly pissed.
  "The bastard marked me!" I shout into the space. My fist ball is at my sides as my breathing gets heavy with anger. After everything that has been done to me by him, this really makes the icing on the cake. I did not choose a bond with him. I never even thought of accepting him and he just went ahead and made the decision for me.
 
  "He did what he was made to do. It's a wonder that he even went through it all if you are so undeserving of such a gift" She says with a huff.
 
  I stare at the flames of the fire and momentarily wish that I had wood to add to the flames so it would go higher. Even though it is so beautiful, I believe that it could be more. "You say that  am undeserving of your gift. Have you ever thought that maybe it wasn't a gift but a curse. What gave you the right to choose someone for your creations to love anyway" I question her.
 
  "I knew that you weren't going to be easy young lady but you take pigheaded to a whole new level. I do not choose the bonds specifically. I didn't wade through the identity of every female and male human on earth and just bind them to a soul of one of my creations. As soon as a soul was born that matched theirs completely a bond was made. The spell cast was not to choose someone for them to love but to give them what they were born without. Hope" She says softly.
 
  The tone of her voice makes me find her face once more in the dimness of the room. You would expect to hear words like that made with conviction and yet there is only sorrow in her tone. It brings another question to ask that I cant waste. "Born as they are with so much to offer the world, what makes you think that they need hope?" I say.
 
  "Because everyone does child. Hope is defined as a feeling of expectation or the desire for a certain thing to happen. It defines that one moment in your life that you have always waited for. It's the moment that gives you the foundation that you build from. It's the moment that you finally begin to thrive and find your place in this chaotic world. Hope is what everyone in this world looks for because when you experience having nothing, hope is all that remains" The conviction in her words ring so true now that tears fill my eyes.
 
  "Okay. So what do I do?" I ask as I step forward. With a truth like that, I don't believe that there is anymore left to say. The moment that she speaks of is one worth fighting for. Not just for myself but as an example to others. The smile on her face lets me know that I am making the right decision.
 
  "A soul is much like a flame. It does not exist to simply be. It must be fed and nourished so that a flame becomes a fire. However, precaution is needed to handle such a thing. In ones control it can create such beauty and flow abundantly. Although, when out of control it can become the greatest distraction that will destroy everything in its path" I ponder he words as she says them and I look for the meaning. As I lift my head to ask her a question its only then I notice that she has disappeared.
 
  Well that's just great I say aloud as I look around the room. The crazy old bat has left me with a riddle and no clear direction. What the heck am I supposed to do now.