The Keeper

Chapter 8

We arrived back to our hiding place and Damien walked right up to the bedroom. I followed quickly with many questions flooding me and walked in on him stripping his clothes that were stained red.

"What did you do? Were those people screaming because you killed the higher-ups?" I ask confused and feeling betrayed for some reason. I didn't notice at first because his cloak covered the spots where the red stains were.

Damien turned around and wiped the remaining blood off him then threw the shirt down aggressively.

"Yes Arya. I killed them. To be honest it would help me regain my fallen kingdom so they were just stepping stones. Let's not forget that they would have never let you go, they would have hurt and tortured you more. I saw what they did to you after you returned the first time. I tried to talk to them but they wouldn't listen. So problem solved." Damien explained.

He had no remorse in his voice he seemed like he enjoyed killing those people. How many others has he killed. I felt far too many emotion at once. I hated the higher-ups but I didn't want them killed, just punished. Damien turned from me continuing to wash off blood, while the voice came up again telling me to touch his mark on his back. Without thinking I rush up to his back and touch the middle of his mark. It starts to glow and I feel a rush of power shoot through me. Damien yelped.

"Ow what the hell did you do. That burned." He said turning to me.

I look down at my hand seeing strange marks. "I broke the link."

"What?" he asked confused.

I don't answer but just run. I feel my anger and sadness rise in me. I know they were bad people but seeing him kill so carelessly bothered me, I needed to get out to clear my head. I keep running until I couldn't run anymore.

I stopped in the middle of a forest and sat down on a rock. This is what I wanted. Freedom, to pay back those monsters for what they did. But my heart hurt from leaving him there alone, I couldn't look at him.

All of a sudden my head starts hurting and flashes of images go through my head. Things I don't understand. I was seeing red and gold along with other things I couldn't piece together.

"Hey are you okay?" A voice said behind me.

I turn and see a young woman with a blue fox next to her.

"I'm fine." I say trying to stand unsure of who this person could be.

"No you aren't you look like you drained all the power out of you." She said as her fox rubbed up against me. "Come with me, I'll help you."

I followed her to a little cabin, curious about how she could know about my power. She sat me down at the table and gave me some tea.

"So, you are someone special from what I can tell because the guardian actually likes you. And it seems you used magic that ran off your emotions. Which now you are drained. So please tell me what happened."

"I broke a link that I had with someone. I was mad and upset." I say looking down at the fox that balled itself up in my lap.

"That's some heavy stuff. I'm guessing you ended up hurting that person huh? You were probably linked for a bit." She says messing with the fire in the fireplace.

"I guess, he said that I burned him. But I didn't mean too." I say now concerned for Damien.

"I see. Well you can stay here as long as you need. You need to regain your strength, but breaking a link will take a toll on you. So whatever happens just let it happen." She said sitting in front of me.

"I never got your name." I say taking a sip.

"My name is Sera. This place can be your safe haven and Blu will watch over you. Everything you need will be here until you want to leave." She says pointing a table close to a window. "Now get some rest."

I nod and lay down on the bed to rest. My body was heavy and I didn't realize how exhausted I was until now.

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While I slept I actually dreamed this time. I was back at the cave where I left Damien. I saw him sitting in his room. The placed trashed beyond what could be fixed. He just sat in the chair drinking. He stood up to get more bottles. He couldn't see me but I could see the look on his face, he was upset and sad. I looked at his back where I touched him and a hand mark was burned on his skin.

Then I felt something rub against me. It was Blu.

"How did you get in my dream?" I asked the little fox.

"This isn't a dream. This happening right now a consequence of breaking a link by force. He ruined everything after you ran out of here. He was mad, sad, scared, and now empty. He put your bow under the bed so he wouldn't have to look at it. And that hand mark on him will serve as a reminder to him about you." The blue fox said as we watched Damien come back into the room with a new bottle. "You will watch him every night as long as you are not with him."

"What why? I didn't ask to be linked to him. To that monster" I say watching Damien chug down the bottle.

"Fate had her reasons and he may have been a monster hundreds of years ago. But you can't tell me that he hasn't been better when you were around. Damien could have tried to kill Queen Diane and the other two kingdoms but he couldn't because he was linked to you." The blue fox said sitting next to Damien.

I circle Damien to see my hand mark in the middle of his back.

"Touch it. See what happens." The fox says watching patiently.

I reach out to place my hand in the same spot. I was expecting to go through him or something but I felt his back and the burned skin.

Damien jumped up and looked behind him. He was looking right through me.

"Fox what game are you playing at." I say looking down at him.

"I'm not. I'm just here to guide you on your journey until you fully become who you are supposed to be." He responded.

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Weeks had past of me regaining my strength and learning how to use my powers properly as much as I could. Every night I would sit with Damien in his room while he made plans for something. He looked different than when I was with him. His eyes were colder. The next night I saw him, he was in a different room. It looked like he took over the Key Seekers home and rebuilt his castle.

I looked around and saw my bow and books were still under the bed. Then I heard the door open Blu looked up too.

"Well how upsetting." Blu said watching Damien bring in a beautiful young woman fawning over him.

I could only watch as he poured her more to drink. Then the woman got curious as she noticed my bow under the bed and grabbed it while Damien wasn't looking.

"What is this thing?" the woman asked playing if it in her hands. "It's pretty. Can I have it?"

Damien's eye narrowed and rushed to her. "Do not touch that." He hissed taking it from her and placing it under the bed carefully.

After that Damien grabbed the woman and pulled her towards him making her giggle. I didn't want to watch this, not one bit. With all my might my closed my eyes and I woke up back in the cabin.

It was still dark out and Blu looked at me. "Good you are stronger. But if you left because you didn't want to see him with that woman, don't worry. He killed her instead." Blu said while readjusting himself on my stomach.

"What?" I ask confused.

"She touched your stuff. That's a no-no in his book." Blu said closing his eyes.

I didn't want to go back to sleep but I needed too.