Ran, Running, and Will Run By Maddiff Rel

Control or Lack of It

You wake up with a start as if from a bad dream. You are drenched in sweat from head to toe. Your thin gray shirt with sleeves that only go to your elbow and your shorts that only go half way down your thigh were the coldest clothing that you had, not that you had much more than that to wear.

You had changed into them because the hearth was doing its job yesterday afternoon, but now the fire had gone out and it was cold once again in the stone temple walls. You go to light it.

Why am I hot, then? you think to yourself. Right after this thought appears in your mind, you see the orange flicker of a candle in the left corner of your eye, but when you turn around, nothing. Everything is fine save the cold. Then, there it is again in the right corner of your eye. You swifty launch yourself away from the flicker and grab your sword from the back wall.

You got into a fighting stance ready to face whatever was there. Nothing. Just a torch-lit living room with a dead hearth in the middle.

You stand there a few always, but nothing comes. It is just, well, nothing until you see a small fire where your sword was. Uh oh, you think. Suddenly, a ball of flame almost hits your bedroom wall, but you redirect it to the hearth which lights up in seconds. Flames start caressing the blade once again, and you super-run outside to the snow, but just before you can a fireball bursts out of the end of the blade through the doorway. Flames are now blue on the blade.

The air is crisp and clear without a single cloud in the sky. But it's cold. It is freezing especially with your feet in the fresh fallen snow. That is if your blade isn't on fire and if you don't feel on fire.

You plunge your blade into the snow in hopes of it cooling down. The snow around it instantly melts, but other than that, everything is cold again. You were cold, a feeling you hadn't felt in a long time. Even in the fortress in the jungle, it was always warm. You run inside and warm your now frosty skin by the hearth.

Hopefully John and Myron haven't woken up... you hope with all you mite.

All your hopes betray you as Josh right along with Myron walked into the hearth room of the temple sleepily.

"What," he yawns in between his words, "haaappened?"

"Yeah, please feel obliged to fill us in," Myron says as if he was sleep walking.

"Weeeell," you say shyly, "there might have been a small fireball shot at our door." You fill them in as best you can, leaving out the "I had to kill my only friend" part. You weren't ready for that.

"So," Josh said, "you remember that you have the magical ability to control fire? One of the most unstable of magics?"

"Correct," you answer and realize how stupid it sounds, "and then, I accidentally shot a small to medium sized fireball at the door."

"So," Myron cut in before Josh could make another comment on the situation, "how do we control it?"

"No clue," you say just as Josh sighs.

"Can't we just wait until the morning? So that we can all have the energy to face something like this?"

The three of you agreed to this, and you slept through the night. This night was no exception to all of the other nights when memories were shoved and forced into your head...

■ ■ ■

After the battle with the now dead Griffin, you were free. You could leave this jungle forever, but what about Montigo? Where was he?

I need to find something that, your thoughts were seperated and repeated, something - need to find - find something that - that reminds me - re-reminds me of Montigo - Montigo - reminds me of Montigo.

What just happened? you thought clearly this time. You ignored it, but after a few minutes, the words "What just happened?" echoed in your head randomly. The repeated thought was choppy, and you felt a faint form of magical power behind you.

As you look back slowly because multiple thoughts and words are being repeated in your head, you start to falter all the way to the ground. When you finally manage to turn around, you are greeted with a slimy and odorous grin of a three-foot-tall three-headed cyclops.

■ ■ ■

You wake up gently this time. Josh and Myron look nervously at you a few feet from the door. They had opened the window in hopes of you waking up soon; it is almost noon.

"Good morning, Aeva," Josh says softly. He walks up and leaned on the doorframe, "You feeling okay?" He said this out of care.

"Yeah, you look worried," Myron speaks as he too walked cautiously closer to the door.

"N-no," you say, "I'm fine. Let's get to work on how to control this newly found magic." You sound more desperate than you want to at the moment, but you want to get the cyclops out of your head.

They both reluctantly agree. You, along with Josh and Myron, put on your armor and grab your sword, and you walk with them to the top of the temple after you have some breakfast.

"What do we do now?" Myron says, clearly reading everyone's minds.

"I dunno," you say as you looked down at your boots trying to forget the cyclops.

"Maybe we could see what happens when she gets too excited," Josh says slowly, "And I know just the way to do it!"

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I am talking about." Suddenly, Josh runs toward you at a blinding speed (nowhere near as fast as you could go) and threw you off the roof.

This is bad...

The air rushes past your face as you fall down past the three-story tall temple. You brace yourself for the impact when something strange happens. You feel your eyes light up just a twinge, and your whole body erupts in flames.

"Did not expect that to happen," you can hear Josh's voice as you sprout your own fiery wings and slowly cover the distance between you and him, "Hey! Aeva! How did you get all the way down there! Heh-heh-heh..."

"Why the hell would you do that?!" you say, obviously angry.

"H-hey! It worked didn't it?"

You sigh in disbelief at his stupidity and glide down to the roof. Your eyes cool down, and your wings dissipate.

"Maybe we should do something different then throwing me off of a roof to make me excited," you point to the woods, "I could practice on the trees or even a monster if one comes by. You two stay behind. I don't want you getting hurt again."

"But Aeva, not wanting us to get hurt is what got you lost," Myron shouted over the growing wind.

"Maybe," you pause, "Maybe I want to get lost again."

"Wha-?" they both say, dumbfounded. You walk down the stairs looking at the rooms as you pass by.

What am I doing? you think silently, Go back! Go back! Why can't I control myself?! Help! Heeeeelp!!! But you can't utter a word.

The rooms are full of random leather pouches and equipment. The bags held piles of gold and silver inside. Many times you would see an heirloom, but one necklace steals your glance. It had a plain silver chain with a circle of silver on the chain. You grab it. Taking it takes a lot of force, so you still can't turn around, go back, and explain what just happened to Josh and Myron.

I'll take this to remember where home is. I don't know who you are. But whoever is forcing me to walk out on my friends after just a month of finally being back home, you will pay. You will not get away with this, you thought as your fire-wings spread wide, and you flew swiftly into the deep forest.

■ ■ ■

You are still flying in the forest when sunlight was no longer existent. A single, deep, powerful voice roared out from within the darkness, "Hello, Aeva." It says this while something gave your wings the command to land.

"Who is this?" you shout pitifully. A single tree goes up in purple and black flames.

He repeated his words as if trying to force them into your skull, "Hello... Aeva."