I jolted up and sucked in a long breath.
A heard a little shriek come from the right of me and a dark figure moving closer to the wall.
"Holy shit that hurts," I hissed out.
My back was on fire and my head was pounding. I reached up and rubbed my forehead while taking a deep breath, trying to steady my lungs.
I heard a little whimper towards the back corner and I snapped my head around to see who it came from.
What I saw stole the air out of my lungs again.
Shaking in the back corner was a little girl around the age of 12.
Even in the dark, I could see her long, light brown hair cascading down her shoulders and her deep chocolate eyes looking at me with tears that threatened to fall. Her little body was shaking in her ratted clothes.
We stared at each other in silence, both of us sharing the same look of disbelief.
What was a girl so young doing here?
I broke away and let my eyes wander around the dark room. It was similar to the cell Jax and I were put in years ago, but smaller.
I clenched my jaw at the thought of Fallon putting a little girl down here. Anger began to burn in my veins like a spark being ignited.
But my anger diminished when I heard her frail voice crack as she whispered,
"H-How are y-you..." She trailed off.
I closed my eyes and let out a sigh before turning to face her.
"How am I not dead?" I said softly, a coy smile tugging at my lips.
She didn't respond, she just kept gaping at me with fearful eyes.
I don't know if that fear was towards Fallon, or if it was directed towards me.
I slowly rose to my feet, for there were no chains holding me down, and took cautious steps over to her. When I started to get closer, I watched as she tried to scoot away, making herself look as tiny as possible.
I stopped in my tracks and held my hands up in a form of surrender.
"Hey, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you."
I squatted down, grunting a little as the skin on my back stretched, tugging at fresh wounds that needed time to heal.
My heart went out to this girl and when I looked at her, I saw myself in her eyes.
A girl who was terrified of this world, drowned in darkness, and shoved to the side like she never mattered. I saw the girl I used to be, but that wasn't me.
That was not Seraphina Whelan.
Her eyes flickered around the room, deep in thought, before she looked up at me with hope in her chocolate brown orbs.
"D-Do you p-promise?" She whispered.
My eyes softened as I blinked slowly. I gave her a reassuring smile and reached out my hand.
"I promise, little one. No one is going to hurt you ever again."
I said sternly and I meant it.
I wanted to protect this girl, she didn't deserve this life, she was far too young to be thrown into the deepest pits of hell.
She looked at my hand for a long moment before reaching out hesitantly.
Right after she gently placed her hand on mine, she fell into my arms. I wrapped my arms around her frail body protectively as she clung to me like I was her lifeline. She began to sob into my shoulder, her body shaking uncontrollably.
I placed my hand on the back of her head and gently combed my fingers through her straight hair, trying to calm her mind. I cradled her, rocking her back and forth gently as her sobs turned into quiet sniffles and hiccups.
We sat in a comfortable silence, neither of us wanting to say a word.
Our moment was broken when I heard keys being entered into a lock outside the door.
I scrambled up to my feet and pushed the young girl behind me. I narrowed my eyes and prepared myself for a fight.
But the raven-haired boy who walked through the cell door was the furthest thing from a threat.
"Hey, Ronan. How's she doin-"
He stopped mid-sentence, gasping at the sight before him. His hazel eyes were so wide, I thought they were about to fall out of their sockets.
I let out a small giggle and placed my hands on my hips.
"Well, hello to you too, Dylan." I smirked.
He opened his mouth a few times, but nothing came out. I laughed harder at the look on his face, it was utterly priceless. He kept flickering his eyes from me to the little girl behind me, pointing his finger and muttering words like "What? How? You..."
I rolled my eyes and smiled at him.
"I take it you're surprised to see me."
"Hold on, you died!" He said in disbelief.
I rolled my eyes and pulled the young girl named Ronan out from behind me, placing an arm around her shoulder.
I looked down at Ronan and gave her a playful wink before looking back at Dylan.
"Yeah well, it didn't stick."
I shrugged innocently and I heard a soft giggle come from the little girl under my arm. I looked down at her and smiled brightly at the sound of her laugh.
Dylan let out a hot break and raked his fingers through his hair.
"Are you like immortal or something?" He breathed out.
"Don't be stupid, Dylan. Of course I'm not immortal." I said crossing my arms over my chest.
He threw his arms out to the side before sighing.
"But this is the second time you have come back from death, I mean come on Atarah-"
A ferocious growl tore through my lips before I could stop it.
I heard Ronan let out a quiet whimper as Dylan jumped back in shock. I took a deep breath and looked down at my little one apologetically.
I didn't like being called a name that wasn't truly my own.
Atarah was the name of a girl who was afraid of the world, who had no idea who she was and where she came from. I was no longer that girl and I would never be her again.
"My name is Seraphina Whelan." I said sternly.
I watched both of them gasp at the mention of my name.
"Y-You're her!"
Her endless dark eyes were wide with hope and adoration.
I walked across the room and leaned against the wall, letting out a hot breath. Ronan padded over to stand in front of me, looking me up and down.
"You're the girl from my vision, you're the one who's going to save us all, you're the-"
"The Virago..." Dylan said breathlessly.
He shook his head in disbelief as Ronan stood frozen in place.
When she said that I was going to be their savior, all I could do was grin.
This was going to be fun.
"It all makes sense now..." he thought out loud.
I cocked my head to the side and looked at him with arched brows. He took a deep breath and tugged at his hair.
"The reason you survived this long, why Fallon was always obsessed with you, how you couldn't be killed by him, everything. You're the prophecy, the-"
"The legend. The bringer of peace and the destructor of chaos, I know." I said exasperated.
"Trust me, I'm not everything I'm racked up to be. I'm no Goddess, I'm a monster. And right now, I want vengeance and I want to get the hell out of this place." I said through gritted teeth.
I looked across the room at Little Ronan, then to Dylan before I felt a strong urge to protect these two rush over me.
I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest.
"Dylan, take Ronan and get the hell out of this house."
He snapped his eyes up to mine, head cocked to the side.
"Why?" He asked slowly.
A sadistic grin tugged at the corners of my mouth.
"Because I'm planning on burning it to the ground." I spoke calmly.
Dylan's eyes widened for a split second before his face grew taught with a collected seriousness that matched my own.
He nodded to me before reaching his hand out and pulling Ronan towards the door. I slowly followed in suit, making a game plan in my mind.
We all stopped as soon as we got into the dark hallway. I looked over my shoulder at Ronan before kneeling down.
I gently placed my hands on her shoulders as she looked up at me with hopeful eyes. I pulled her into a tight hug and kissed her hair.
"I will find you once this is all over, Little One. Until then, Dylan will keep you safe." I said flickering my eyes up to the raven-haired boy I've grown so fond of.
He gave me a short nod and I kissed her crown one more time before rising to my feet.
"Find somewhere safe to hide, if I don't find you within 24 hours, run. Stay safe Dylan."
He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest. His heart was beating rapidly, his breathing a little labored.
He pulled back and took my face in his hands, boring into my eyes with an intensity I haven't seen from him before.
"Don't worry about us. You just make sure you come back alive, you hear me?"
I smiled softly as he rested his forehead on my own. I let my fingers trace the edge of his sharp jaw. His hazel eyes met mine and I tried my hardest to memorize them, because I knew that after today, there was a chance I would never see them again.
He let out a hot breath and took a step backwards, pulling Ronan into his side. They both gave me small smiles before starting to walk backwards.
"Good luck, Seraphina." He said sternly.
I gave them a short nod, and with that, they turned and began to sprint down the hallway of shadows.
Once they were out of sight, I turned around and squared my shoulders.
It was time to pay an old friend a visit.