Heather's Adventures: The Search for Maxamus

Chapter 58. Heather

"Who goes there?" A voice shouted to me from the other side of the tunnel. A sword touched my chest violently. Someone was obviously there.

The voice was familiar, however. It was the grandmaster of my school. This was just bad timing.

"Heather Vestilyn Mellissa of Issola! Disarm yourselves!" I shouted back. Max freaked out and had fallen on my ankles from where I was crawling in the tunnel.

The voice sounded again, "get out or we will be forced to use force! Identify yourself!"

"I did! I am Heather Vestilyn Mellissa of Issola! House of Mellissa! Student of the Issola Academy for Mages! If you don't let us through I will be forced to fight you until you let me through!" My fists lit aflame and I saw my grandmaster's face.

He quickly identified me and put away his sword, "Miss Mellissa, how do you dare know of this entrance?"

I shrugged, "it's back in the fire base for our tournament of 'Capture the Flag' which every year you question to permit. Notice all the scorch marks? Zena and I used this to slip out and win. Now will you let me pass or not?"

"Who is traveling with you, and how did you manage to escape—"

"I walked out, and none of this has to do with you. The Weird-o, Dawnlight, and Sheria are with me, as well as two members of the Merrywell household. I have already come back once but was only driven out by a man of dark magic and intentions, not like you really care. I'm working for Nellie now. I've been assigned a duty since you've failed to properly use me for the things that work best for me. Thanks for the help in teaching me how not to live my life."

"Heather, don't disrespect your elders," The Weird-o told me. I grumbled and rolled my eyes, "so you've been hiding out in the fire base this entire time instead of fighting off darkness?! You taught us to fight evil, not run from it. You're a hypocrite!"

"We tried to ward off him, we couldn't beat him. His powers well outranked our own. He took an interest in Zena, Frank, and Jen so we used that time to escape and try to stop him. We lost those three but we managed to escape." He let us up into the fire base. There was probably a good thirty or so people staying in it—woman, children, men, elders. Honestly more people than I thought there'd be. It was a large base, half underground, however I didn't expect to find people hiding in it.

"Yet you didn't save them, nor my parents. I saved them myself." I sighed as I looked to the people in the base. They were whispering amongst themselves about the return of us, as well as the newcomers, two Merrywells.

"Oh Josh, Heather, Dawnlight, Sheria, you're alright!" Annie ran up and hugged the Weird-o. She was his girlfriend.

Bleck.

The Weird-o nodded, "I'm glad you're alright as well. I was worried about you." He didn't even mention her while we were gone. He's such a great boyfriend. Meanwhile he's moderately interested in half of what I do. I don't know what's up with him. That's why he's a Weird-o.

"Oh, that man was so scary, he almost took me instead of Zena...oh, I'm just glad you're alright!"

"That man...you mean the one I took out?" I asked.

Annie gave me a look, "what?"

"That man, the one I fought and beat him my eternal flames, was that him?" I questioned while scratching the back of my neck with one end of my bow awkwardly, "He kinda was scary, but he wasn't that hard to take out."

"She really did it! She really took him out!" Sheria smiled, "it was easy for her."

"He overpowered the entire academy. Miss Heather, is there something you're not telling us?" Grandmaster asked me.

I shook my head, "No. It was easy. I just activated my heart's power and—"

"She has a heart's power!" Annie gasped as she drew herself away from the Weird-o. She pushed her almost shoulder length amber hair behind her ears, "Grandmaster, she-she's—"

"Miss Heather here is bonded to this young man right here, Maxamus Merrywell." The Weird-o stated.

Grandmaster shook his head, "a Merrywell? Nonetheless Maxamus? But Miss Mellissa—"

"Fire. I know. We don't understand it either." The Weird-o stated, "all I know is that Heather's gaining power fast. She's not like the other Mellissa's nor anyone here. Remember, Heather joined the academy young. She was pursued. She has Thalia's Amulet and Bow for Thalia's sake!"

"That's enough!" I shouted as the room became silent. I felt my eyes coat over their fire orange from their lavender. I clutched my bow firmly in my right hand while my fists and my feet were on fire, "You just don't get it do you? I'm not normal. You knew that all along yet were trying to restrict me. I could fight that man, yet you couldn't. I've learned everything this academy has to offer to me. I'm done. I'm moving on. I'm going back once more to rid of any other creatures that still linger there, then I'm leaving. You don't need me. You were keeping me to protect yourselves. From what? I have yet to find out. All I know is this isn't a game of who gets to possess me. I'm Heather Mellissa, and from here on out I'm going to stay unpossessed by anyone. Do you know what that means? That means I'm my own leader. I don't need a Grandmaster or a leader of any type to tell me what to do. I'll lead myself. I don't need anyone else telling me how to live my life!" I drew an arrow of fire on my bow, "C'mon Max. Let's get outta here. These people just want me because I'm strong and want to take credit for my strength. We've got some bad guys to catch. Nellie's orders. Nellie's orders come from the good of all the land. Nellie is just as capable and can send someone just as capable as me to fulfill her orders. She's just asking me since she knows I'll obey. I was loyal, she knew. I just wish the rest of you were as loyal as I was to you." With those words, I stormed out of my own fire base an onwards to the town with Max and the rest of my team on my heels.