ESCAPE

Past Lives

Asteria went to sleep knowing the day of the meeting was approaching. Several Kings from other lands had already arrived as well as the highest ranking Masters. The castle was already filled with people and more were arriving every hour. It was exhausting. Between what Aegeus had shown her and the kiss... she couldn't think of that right now. Asteria finished a glass of water and closed her eyes and willed herself to the island.

Asteria opened her eyes and she was back on the beach of the island. The turqouise waters kissed her toes against the soft sand. The sun was high in the sky and the heat warmed her skin. In the distance she heard someone laughing. She followed the noise until she found herself at the entrance of a cave. The laughter continued inside and she was tempted to go in and see who was on the island, but she felt like something was wrong. She felt like someone was watching her, but there was no one there. The laughter turned into giggles and she went inside. The cave was dark, but it wasn't really a cave it was an arch that was covered on the other side by vines. Asteria peeked through the vines and saw a woman standing on the sand of a small beach. The woman was laughing at someone in the water that Asteria couldn't see.

"Don't make me come and get you!" A man shouted

The woman laughed, "Come and get me!"

The woman had Lind dark hair and was wearing a thin white dress. She turned her face and Asteria had to hold her breath. It was her mother. A man appeared out of no where and scooped her mother up in his arms. He was pale with bright red hair.

"What does the Queen order me to do now?" He said

Asteria's mother kissed the man and smiled, "Orin I want a child."

The man's face got serious and Asteria's mother frowned. He put her back on her feet and Asteria tried to move forward, but an unknown force held her still.

"Are you sure?" He asked

"Orin we talked about this. I can't be what you want, but that doesn't mean that we can't be together. I love you and I have sworn my fealty to you." Asteria's mother replied

Orin ran his hands through his wet hair and sat down on the sand. He looked tired.

"This war isn't going to end. Why do you want to do this now?" He said

"Because Amazons are warriors by blood. Just as you are. I need to know that you want this. That you want me..." She replied

He stared at Asteria's mother and sighed, "I can never have you, not completely."

Asteria's mother grabbed his hand and kissed it. She looked worried.

"Orin our kind have been together since the beginning. You are the only man that I trust. I love you, but if you don't want to do this then we won't." She said

Orin smiled and shook his head, "Okay."

Asteria's mother smiled and jumped into the man's arms. She kissed Orin quickly and ran away. Orin laughed and got up to chase her. They disappeared before Asteria's eyes and she was able to move again. She walked out onto the beach and sighed. No one was here it was an ech of a memory.

"That was your father." A voice said

Asteria jumped and turned around to see the older version of her mother. The Queen smiled softly, but it didn't reach her eyes.

"The Red Horseman." She said, "He was killed before you were born because he saw what was going to happen. He knew we would all die but nothing he did could change that."

Once again Asteria watched her mother fade away and she was left feeling different. Empty. Like something was missing.

Asteria woke up drenched in sweat. Her heart was beating wildly and she felt dizzy. Something was wrong. Her throat was dry and she felt like throwing up.

"Aegeus..." She croaked

She tried to stand up only to fall to her knees. Something was horribly wrong. She couldn't feel her legs anymore.

"Aegeus!" She cried

The room faded to black and she could vaguely hear the sound of a door openeing. Too late.....