Hazel Richmond and the Creatures of the Night

Early 1900s

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Hazel Richmond, daughter of the Duke of Bradford. Walked along the lakes edge gazing into the darkness of the water, shimmering in the moonlight. Her father Sir Richmond, would not be pleased for a lady such as her status to be wandering the manor's grounds at this ungodly hour. Hazel didn't seem to care. Her father always was worried about the Dark. He used to tell her stories of creatures that played in the dark. Creatures of the night he called them. Alas they were not real. That's what he said... If only her father knew of the curse his daughter had to endure. Hazel was a phoenix, A immortal, beautiful, Fire starter. Hazel could not feel great emotion without everything around her being engulfed in flames. That meant she could not feel sad, she could not get angry, she could not be excited, and... She could never love. She was a abomination. Forced to walk among the world for generations until she was able to be free. Nothing could kill her from what she knew of. She had already tried countless of times. Her body would not die from lack of air, blood, flesh, organs, She would only regenerate. Her blood and wounds healing, her air flowing back to her again after she was safe. She felt demolished inside her empty heart. She would live while her loved ones would die. She could never show them how she felt for the risk of hurting them. She would constantly be fighting with the power inside of her trying to preserve it inside, She could never mourn for them.  She would never grow older than the age of 18. She never understood how she developed the curse. Her mother had died when she was born, her father had told her. Her father was definitely mortal. It was either Genetics or she had being cursed as a child by a seer of some kind. Her father thought types of creatures such as Seers could never exist. Did that mean she shouldn't exist? She sometimes wished she hadn't.

Hazel stared longingly into the distance beyond the water, towards the hills, over the hills there was the shining majestic moon. Her mother once told Hazel that if you look to the moon in hard situations it will bring good fortunes. None of that could be true, because when Hazel's mother died, Hazel Yelled to the moon for guidance or help. No one helped her. Her mother was wrong.

Hazel thought about returning to the house so her father would not worry himself, when suddenly she heard a crunch. She twisted her head towards the outskirts of the forest surrounding their Lake home. Nothing seemed to of moved out of place in the darkness. She was so sure she had heard a stick brake with a crunch, meaning someone had stood on it.

"Who is there." she asked quietly and calm. "I know you are there. I hear you." She stated to the emitting darkness of the deep forest.

Suddenly she thought she saw something move through the darkness at the corner of her eye. She hesitantly took a step forward, towards the forest. Then another. She heard another crunch. "I know you are there show yourself." she asks the darkness.

"You are Hazel Richmond am I right miss?" The darkness proclaimed.

"I-I- Yes, yes I am." She replied, "The phoenix." the darkness stated sounding sure of itself. "You know who I am, But who are you?" she asked. "Someone who hears and sees everything. I collect information in my mind for future use." the darkness replies. " Are you going to hurt me great man of the forest?" she proclaims calmly. "No... How do you know I am a man?" He asks, "Your voice sir is very deep, to deep to be a woman." she answers him honestly. "Observant I see." he exclaims.

"Why not show yourself if your not going to hurt me." she asks sceptically. "I am afraid for your sake not mine." He replies. "Why, what do you mean?" she asks hesitantly. "Some things you mustn't know yet Miss Richmond." the man of the dark whispers to her. "Who are you?" she asks him, But... he was gone. The voice came no more.