Everything happened in the blink of an eye. One minute Lyra was standing on the balcony outside her room, and the next she was up on the roof. A hand was wrapped around her waist, the other being clamped over her mouth to stop her from screaming.

"Relax, Lyra." The red-haired woman sighed, releasing her from her hold, watching as she stumbled away from her. "I'm not here to hurt you, or take you away from your precious Alpha King..."

Red lightning sparked in Lyra's hands. "Who are you?!"

"Relax, my little Lyra." She sighed, wrapping her arms around her in the next second, seemingly unaffected by the lightning racing across her skin. "It's OK."

"That doesn't answer my question." She muttered, stiffening in the woman's grip.

"Doesn't it?" A sad smiled twitched at her lips. "The name's Liberty, in case you were wondering."

"Why are you here?!" Lyra questioned, watching as the woman sat down on the peak of the roof.

"Have a seat." Liberty patted the tiles next to her. "It's more comfy sitting on a sloped roof, than standing on it – you're more likely to fall off if you stay on your feet."

Cautiously, Lyra sat, half curious, half wary. "What do you want with me?"

"I..." Liberty mumbled, staring away from her, looking out across the gigantic maze they could see from their vantage point. "I just wanted to meet you... I knew I had to after I saw your picture on the news..."

"You could've just visited me by the normal means." Lyra said, folding her arms. "You didn't have to kidnap me."

"Technically I haven't kidnapped you." She raised a finger. "You're still inside the castle grounds, I've just borrowed you away from your babysitters."

"You're the second intruder, aren't you?"

Liberty looked at her judgingly. "No kidding."

"You aren't working with Omega Taurus...?" Red lightning sparked around her brightly.

"Hun, I'd rip them limb from limb if I found them..." Liberty said, her eyes darkening, fury written across her face. "I can never forgive them for what they've done... but I restrained myself on that imbecile who crept into your room while you were sleeping... after all, if I'd dismembered him, I'm fairly sure at least one of those idiotic Alpha brats would've twigged as to my identity."

"Your identity?" One red eyebrow rose

"I'd have visited you by the normal means if it were possible, but for someone like me..." Liberty gave her a toothy grin. "Let's just say they wouldn't have given me the warmest of welcomes – hence why we're up here."

"Who are you?" Lyra stared intently at her.

"Now, now, Ly." Liberty sighed, prodding her small nose. "Don't go poking that nose in where it doesn't belong."

"Fine." She grumbled. "But at least tell me why you're here."

"You should be able to figure that out..." Liberty said, leaning back, glancing up at the sky. "Hopefully before I leave."

A shout from below cut through the awkward silence that had fallen, making the pair of them stiffen.

"Ah." She grinned. "Looks like the other three are finally noticing their unconscious friend..."

"You didn't kill him?" Lyra blinked.

"Would you have preferred me to...?" Red lightning sparked in Liberty's hand. "I can go back and correct that if you'd like."

"No. No." Lyra waved her hands. "Blaine is actually OK when he's not with Blaze."

"I just paralysed him, temporarily, of course." Liberty shrugged. "It's quite a handy little trick."

"You can do that with lightning?"

"Duh." Liberty said. "There are a lot of things you don't know about your Gift."

"It's a curse." Lyra said, staring down at her hands. "A curse of blood and slaughter..."

"Is that what Omega Taurus drilled into that pretty little head of yours?" Liberty flicked her forehead with one finger. "If you think the Gift you've got now is a curse, then you'd be shocked at what repercussions come with the three strongest Demon Class Abilities..."

"They're rare, but very powerful... or so I've heard..."

"Power comes at a cost, Ly." Liberty said. "But you've already paid your price..."

"My price?"

"The years you spent with Omega Taurus." She said, glancing sideways at her. "Those with Powerful Gifts are destined to be hunted down and forced to use their Abilities for evil purposes... Well... That's our curse..."

"Our curse?"

"We've got the same Ability, dummy." Liberty shook her head. "Honestly, Lyra, you're slower than I thought you'd be..."

Lyra scowled. "Hey!"

"What?" She raised both hands in surrender. "It's the truth..."

"It's just early in the morning, OK?"

"Sure..." Liberty drawled, both eyebrows raised. "Anyhow... Back to your Gift."

"It's a curse."

"Hardly." She grumbled. "It can be used to kill, yes, but it can also be used to protect." Liberty folded her arms. "I knocked that bratty Alpha out with lightning when I could've killed him. Why? Because I have full control over my Ability. I've embraced my Gift."

Lyra's shoulders sunk. "You're telling me I have to 'accept' my Gift...?"

"Exactly." She sighed. "It's your Gift. You control it. You decide what you do with it."

"It's only good for hurting people..."

"Tch." Liberty ran a hand through her red locks. "I paralysed Blaine without hurting him... too much..."

"I don't know how to paralyse people like that." Lyra stared at the ground. "The only thing I'm good at doing is killing people with my Ability."

"And how did you get good at that in the first place?" Liberty cocked an eyebrow.

Lyra paused, her mouth parting slightly as she realised how simple the answer was. "Practice."

"About damn time you finally got the message." She muttered. "Practice paralysing people with a little spark. Get the feel for how much power to use..."

"Wait... Who the hell am I supposed to use as a test dummy?" She asked. "It's dangerous... isn't it?"

"I practiced on my mate..." Liberty said with a grin. "Ah. Fun times..." She mumbled dreamily. "But as for you... I believe you have a problem with an annoying blonde by the name of Alpha Blaze..." She smiled devilishly.

The corners of Lyra's mouth twitched. "Yes. Yes, I do..."

"I believe you have your first test subject." She said. "So practice until you don't get it wrong, then you can move onto some of the more complicated stuff..."

"There's more?"

"Use your imagination, Ly." Liberty stood, throwing her hands out to the side. "I'm sure there's a spark of creativity in that slow-moving head of yours."

Lyra stood alongside her, glancing sideways at the older woman. "How do you know so much about my Ability?"

Liberty turned, her murky blue eyes piercing Lyra's brown ones. "Surely you've guessed... Bloody hell, you're slow." She laughed humourlessly. "Yours is a Gift passed down in the family..." She said, smiling sadly, generating a red spark. "You're a smart girl, Ly... You'd have to be, to have survived in that place for so long." Liberty laughed. "You must've figured out who I am by now."

Lyra blinked.

"Look, Lyra." Liberty ordered, gazing imploringly at her. "Really look."

Lyra stared at the woman, finally noticing the delicate full lips that turned down slightly in the corners – an exact replica of her own lips. The fiery red hair that shone in the rising sun, like dying embers of flame, was a dead giveaway too.

Some small part of her had been pointing all this out since the moment they'd met, but the word that tumbled out of her mouth still came as a shock to her.

"Mum..."

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ILLENIS HERE

Well, you all probably saw that one coming.

Hope everyone enjoyed this lovely little update and will hang around for the next part, because things should be getting a bit more interesting soon.

Illenis, out.

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