SONDER : Prologue

OMEGA - LUCREYTZJA, Twin Serpent 0.1

"Concentrate, don't lose control."

"It's harder than it-"

"Don't talk. Focus."

The sphere of fire grew, crackling, hovering over one palm. From the other, thick, thorned vines spilled out, growing, slithering across the ground. The vines whipped out and lashed about the leg of the creature and she hurled the ball of fire at its head. It hissed as it began to burn. She wrinkled her nose at its rotting flesh.

Her mentor smirked, "good." He crossed his arms, tipping his handsome chin in the direction of another one. "Again."

"You aren't going to help, are you?" He shrugged, and she wanted to hurl the next ball of flame at that shameless mug! "You're his daughter. Learn to act like it."

She released the vines from the first and whipped out at another, yanking its legs out from under it as she built a second fireball, brow beaded with sweat as she focussed. There were so many of them pouring out from the portal, she couldn't get them all. He couldn't expect her to alone! Yet there he stood, looking like he was admiring the autumn leaves. Unaffected, he ducked, casual, as one of them clawed at his head. Side-stepping, it fell and he scowled at her, "you missed one."

Oh she was going to kill him after this. Suddenly she shrieked, dropping the vines, her growing fireball exploding in her palm as she fell, blood pouring from her leg where one of those things had its fangs burried deep. It giggled as it drew from her and she kicked it with her free leg, panic building inside of her. Her mentor approached, overly calm, sword drawn and arcing across its neck, descending back into its sheathe in one fluid moment. She shrieked, the thing now headless but still attached to her leg. She pried its bite off.

"You're done today," without another word or glance he turned to the creatures, twin daggers in his hands. Then he danced among the demons.

Hurt, angry and ashamed at yet another failure she put pressure over her leg, building fire at her fingertip to cauterize the wound. She stood to her feet shakily, summoning the vines again.

"I said you're done!" She ignored him, charging back in. She was not her father. Never would be. Her mentor turned on her, striking at her chest with his palm and throwing her back down to the ground as his other hand slashed the throat of another creature, his angry gaze on her. Those red eyes of his pinned her in place and she wanted to cry.

"I'm not done! I can do this!"

He spun around, slashing at more of the creatures that had dared to approach. Her heart pounded and she built up fire with both hands now, abandoning the vines as she hurled the ball at another creature behind him. He didn't even glance at her. She got to her feet, pouring out her disappointment into her favourite element. As they fought through numbers that had seemed impossible before, cutting and burning them one after the other, the portal finally snapped shut and the rest of the creatures were dispatched with relative ease.

She panted, falling to her knees. He swiped blood off his weapons, sheathing them with a sigh. "You can't disobey orders. You're not cut out for this."

"I helped you!" She yelled. She wanted to scream in frustration.

"You got bit. That's not helping. That's becoming a liability." He sighed again, going to one knee next to her, gaze softening. "You come from a line of power. It's natural to you. But fighting isn't. Especially, fighting in a team. Mistakes cost lives, and you don't want theirs on your conscience. This isn't for you."

"You can't give up on me now!" Tears pooled in her eyes.

"It's a kindness. You were talking about a normal life. Have one."