Wielders: Protectors of the Realms

Prologue:

~six years ago~

"Stop fidgeting," Ellery scolded. "I can't stop the bleeding if you keep wiggling your hands away."

Ophelia yanked her whipped knuckles out of her older sister's palm, rubbing them against her swollen eyes. The blood mingled with her salty tears, cascading down her splotchy cheeks-- a hemorrhaging porcelain angel.

"I didn't take Mistress Matel's coin purse, it was Joel," the seven-year-old blubbered.

Ellery sighed, gently plucking Ophelia's delicate fingers into her own. "It doesn't matter now...Joel and everyone else in the orphanage are probably dead...or worse."

Ophelia sacrificed her wounded hand once again, the whip marks still fresh on her chubby appendages. The building's walls continued to tremble around the duo, faint whimpers of pain from outside barely permeated their safe haven. "Do you think The Soulless will find us down here?"

"I don't know," The 16-year-old used the last bit of the sisters' hidden stash of healing salve.

Dark thoughts plagued Ellery. She kept her voice strong but if not for their secret passageway, Ophelia would've been helpless against the slaughter that was occurring outside their walls. The thought of Ophelia alone and helpless against a demon horde absolutely terrified Ellery. "The Soulless have quieted down, It won't be long before they leave and we will figure out what to do next. We'll have to find a new world to live on, but getting there will be an issue. We just need them to leave sooner rather than later."

"Maybe they're looking for something?"

Or someone... The unwelcome thought flitted past Ellery's consciousness. 

"Ellery?"

"Yea, Lia?"

"Tell me the story of The Wielder again." Ophelia's cerulean orbs poured into Ellery's onyx ones. Ellery didn't particularly like the story. She did when she was Ophelia's age but now it just filled her with disappointment. Ophelia clamored onto Ellery's lap, blonde ringlets tickling the bottom of her nose. "Please! It's my favorite."

"Fine!" Ellery caved as she snuggled her arms around the child's tiny frame. "Once, there was a man named Hephaistos—"

"No, tell it right. Do the characters!" Ophelia's claps interrupted the story, her injury long forgotten now that the skin had stitched itself back together.

Ellery rolled her eyes before uncouthly flicking her wrist. Dark shadowy wisps bloomed from the girl's palm before hesitantly morphing into a crude silhouette of The Wielder.

She tried her best to get the miniature Hephaistos to dance for Ophelia, but he just smacked his buttocks with his tiny sword. "With his sword of light he brought peace to the universe, his soul supplied us with all the magic we could ever need. Everyone was safe and happy...but it couldn't stay like that."

"An assassin killed his wife!" Ophelia spoiled the plot, grabbing at her sister's amber locks. Ellery ignored the pain, hugging the exuberant girl close. The world around them had grown eerily still...

Like the universe was waiting for something to happen.

"Yes, and it broke his heart. He became consumed with grief, soul tainted along with the vein of magic that flushed the universe with power. Demons flooded through the galaxy, tearing the worlds apart. Hephaistos did the only thing he could to stop this new evil from destroying everyone. He plunged the great sword into the center of the universe, cleaving it into two different—"

"—Realms: The Light and The Dark!" Ophelia interjected again, too invested in the story to remember their current situation. 

"Yes, but you need to stay quiet and stop interrupting."

The blonde nodded, cheeks turning red in embarrassment. Ellery continued. "Anyways. The Wielder vanished but promised that he would reincarnate one day to bring balance back to the universe. Dark magick was all but forgotten by the Light side as they continued to seek advancements in the other 3 Magicks.

"Oooh, I wish we were able to learn about Soul and Reality Magick!"

Ellery cringed, her sister was too young to remember the emotional manipulation involved with Soul Magick or the terrifying uncertainty surrounding Reality Magick. "Anyways, they believed they were safe from the demons, but little gaps in the dimensions appeared, allowing demons and Dark Magick to come back in once again."

"So now people are waiting for the new Wielder to reveal himself!" Ophelia swatted at Ellery's shadows, letting the wisps curl around her thin arms. "But Elle, I hope he doesn't get rid of Dark Magick again. I don't want anything happening to you."

Ellery didn't know how to respond to it, the cursed power that ran through her veins felt like a death sentence. So instead of lying, she avoided the topic entirely. "The Wielder is meant to bring peace once again, so don't need to worry about me disturbing the peace."

"Will the new Wielder save us then too?" 

"He will." Ellery swallowed awkwardly. How do I tell a seven-year-old that nobody is coming to save us? "However, until then, I'll protect you."

"You and your shadows!" Ophelia giggled, running her plucky fingers in floral swirls on Ellery's biceps. The gesture comforted the older sister, a moment of happiness that wouldn't last.

"Yes, me and my shadows." The teenager smiled at the ray of sunshine that glistened within Ophelia. She felt at peace for a moment, the threads of this memory the only thing that would get Ellery through the horrors soon to come.

The dusty hideaway deep within the orphanage's attic had always offered sanctuary to the sisters. Its musty brick walls kept the cruel world around them out for years. Some of their best memories were from this dirty, cramped room. Despite the appearance, the girls thought it was the best place in the universe filled with visions of Ophelia's laughter, sisterly dreaming, and an endless array of stories for the girls to wonder about. The only vibrancy in the girls' otherwise dull grey world.

As the crumbling bricks were torn away like fresh bread for an obsidian husk to consume, Ellery knew that this was the universe once again destroying the only kernel of bliss she would ever hold dear. Ophelia's terrified screams thrummed painfully against Ellery's eardrums as glowing red eyes caught her in a trance-like state. A woman's face stood out in the raging shadows that tore apart what's left of the orphanage, destiny's plan in action.

"Well, Well, Well...What do we have here?"

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Cloooooo

PS: I'm doing some major story editing so don't be alarmed by the sudden loss of chapters lol I am changing some things up and I'm really excited to share with you guys updates (: