Catherine. That was Catherine's voice. 

I tried to yell but realized Violet had taken away my voice. Glancing up at her, she looked flustered and nervous as she looked back between me and the clearing. Suddenly, she knelt besides me and slapped a hand across my forehead.

Her eyes grew bright purple as she focused in on me. I watched as desperation and worry creased lines on her face. I wasn't sure what she was trying to do; she had already numbed my whole body so that I wouldn't be able to run or talk.

Suddenly, I felt a painful spark in my brain. I didn't know what was going on, but I couldn't even flinch or yell out in discomfort. My breaths grew heavier as the pain increased; I could see Violet growing more and more frustrated, but before she could continue, the sound of footsteps pounding through the forest ground echoed through the air.

Violet gritted her teeth and huddled behind the bush with me. Being unable to talk or move had never felt more infuriating before. I heard the sound of footsteps grow closer and prayed they would come over to this side, but at the same time, as I watched Violet's eyes grow brightly, I was hoping they would pass right past us.

"Sakura, where are you?"

Tristan. Crap, I couldn't move—

Whomp.

I startled and glanced next to me to see Aslan crouching besides us. He had a bleeding nose and was clutching it tightly in one hand with a spiteful expression. Breathing hard, he glanced at Violet and shouted-whispered, "They somehow managed to get past Raylor and stole our horses. Three of them are in the forest right now. The black-haired guy is guarding the horses."

"It's fine," she nodded. "No matter how well he fights, there's two of us. I'll take the lead and try to get into his mind. Haul her with you and get ready to take a horse."

She swiftly bounced ahead, leaving Aslan and I together. Aslan roughly swept me off my feet and glanced around wearily before streaking off towards the clearing. I squeezed my eyes shut as the wind lashed at my face. We stopped behind a large tree where Aslan laid me against the trunk.

He opened his palm up, and a fireball appeared. A second later, the falling rain extinguished it. Anger and frustration burned in Aslan's purple eyes as he clenched his hands into fists. "Shit. If only I were a Royal, my fires could withstand the rain..."

The more I saw Aslan and Violet, the more I wondered just how big the power gap between the Royals and the Bares had. Aslan set me down behind the trunk so that I was out of sight from Justin, but I could still see the clearing out of the side of my eye.

I mentally screamed when I noticed Violet's shadow in the trees, watching Justin's back as he patted the horses and attempted to tie each of them to the carriage which had a missing wheel. My breath hitched in my throat when I noticed a large lump lying in the front of the carriage. The driver was nowhere to be seen.

Justin didn't seem to notice Violet at all; not only did he have his back to her, he had his hood up which blocked his peripheral view.

Justin...c'mon...run...run!

At that moment, Violet jumped off from a branch and launched herself at the oblivious Justin. Miraculously, Justin looked behind him just in time to see Violet flying at him. My heart soared just as fast as it sank when I realized he didn't have enough time to move.

I blanched. That's right. He didn't know all Violet had to do was touch him, and then paralyze him all together. I watched in horror as Violet slapped her hand over Justin's hand. Aslan hissed in victory underneath his breath and picked me up, ready to charge out and grab a horse.

But nothing happened to Justin. He pushed her off and drew his sword, twirling it expertly in his hand. Violet tumbled into the ground and stared up at him as he stood in front of her.

"What the—" Aslan snarled. "Why didn't it affect him?"

I was just as confused, but I was far too relieved that Justin was still standing. Violet snapped back up to her feet and charged at Justin again. She was relatively fast—within a second she was at Justin's side and grabbed his hand again.

Justin glanced down at her hand and glanced back up at her. He was obviously confused as to what she was doing, but he didn't hesitate to use that to his advantage. Pulling her towards him, he flipped her arm behind her back and yanked her to the ground.

Aslan gritted his teeth and glanced down at me. I could tell he was deciding whether or not to use me as bait, but I wasn't as worried anymore. Aslan couldn't use his Guang with the rain, and Justin had already taken down Violet. A few seconds later, the others will come as well and help out.

We'll be just fine.

Just like I thought, I could hear footsteps pounding back from the forest. Tristan and Catherine popped out of the thicket of trees and ran into the clearing. The rain was coming down a little harder now, and I could barely see their faces.

"You didn't find her?" Justin glanced up from pressing Violet's arm against her back.

Tristan motioned towards our direction. "Yuri took that side, and he hasn't come back yet. Maybe he did find her."

Justin clicked his tongue and glanced up at Tristan. "Take over for me. Catherine, you stay behind as well. I'll follow Yuri."

As soon as Tristan bent down to grab Violet's arm, Justin got up and began to run towards us. Aslan's cursed underneath his breath and grabbed me, ready to escape if he needed to. I stared desperately after Justin, hoping he could come faster, but before Justin could even enter into the forest, a high-pitched scream pierced through the air.

My eyes widened when I glanced behind Justin. My blood ran cold, and I stopped breathing. Tristan had grabbed Catherine by the neck and pushed her down to the ground.

Justin skidded to a stop. "Tristan! What are you doing—"

Violet stood up and dusted her clothes off. She grabbed a horse and stared straight at our direction, her purple eyes brighter than ever. Aslan pulled me up; my eyes were still glued to Tristan and Catherine.

What was happening? Why was Tristan on top of Catherine? Why was he choking her?

I turned my eyes towards Violet who was watching Justin run towards Tristan. It had to be her. Although it somehow didn't work on Justin, she was able to get to Tristan.

But how?

Aslan began to run out to the clearing, but my mind was only buzzing to try and find out what Violet's Guang could be. Why did it only affect me and Tristan? Did Justin have something we didn't have? 

No, it couldn't be. Violet's Guang involved the ability to influence your muscles; it should've affected Justin as well. 

Before I could muse over it any longer, Aslan handed me to Violet and jumped on to the horse before holding out his hands to pull me up. I closed my eyes and tried to jolt a feeling in my legs or arms, but I couldn't feel anything. Aslan pulled me in front of him; without any support, I tilted backwards and fell against Aslan.

"I'll deal with them," Violet said. "Go ahead."

I glanced ahead and felt my heart jump out of my throat when I saw Justin trying to pull Tristan back. Although Tristan was trying to jump on Catherine, his face was full of shock and horror. He looked like he was consciously aware of what he was doing, yet he could do nothing to stop it.

Panic spread through me as Aslan kicked the horse to start running.

What could I do? I'm paralyzed...I'm paralyzed, I'm paralyzed—

I paused; even if my body might be paralyzed, my mind wasn't. I was hesitating at first because Nan had just talked about me misusing the power, but I had no choice now. I needed to help the others.

Concentrating on the subconsciousness of my brain, I directed the warmth straight to the horse. A split second later, there was a loud crack!, and with a painful cry, the horse fell to the ground. Aslan and I flew off and tumbled on to the muddy ground.

"What the—" Aslan snapped, pushing himself up. He grabbed the horse and tried to pull it back up, not noticing its broken leg.

I still laid on the ground, trying to move, but unable to. Although I had fallen far and hard, I couldn't even feel the pain. How do I enable myself to move again? What should I do?

"Sakura!"

Catherine's face suddenly popped above me. Her face sent literal waves of relief through me, and I tried to tell her I was okay, but she began to feel me all over.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Why can't you move?"

I blinked.

"You can't talk either?" she cried. "Does it have something to do with that woman? She did something to Tristan too!"

"Hey!" Aslan suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me to him. "Back off."

This was bad. The last thing I wanted was for Catherine to have to deal with any of these guys when she was the only one who had never wielded a weapon before. I watched with a growing pit of dread in my stomach as Catherine stood her ground.

Although she was shaking, she didn't back off. When Aslan took a step back, trying to drag me back, Catherine lunged and grabbed hold of my legs.

"Why you—"

Aslan dropped me and slapped Catherine. She dropped my legs and stumbled back, holding her red cheek. Anger exploded inside of me as I stared at Catherine's unstable figure.

Break free.

Break free.

Break free.

Break.

I gasped.

Quickly directing the warmth whirling in my subconscious to my left arm, I gritted my teeth and prepared for the pain. It was brisk and sharp, but it had done its job. I felt the fracture in my bone wake my arm up. Suddenly, I could feel both the pain from the scratches I had received from falling and the broken bone spread throughout my body.

Biting back a yell, I moved my left arm and gulped. Hesitating, I glanced over at my right arm and slowly lifted it in the air. I looked down at my legs and shook my feet. Disbelief coursed through me; it was that simple? I thought she completely locked down every part of my body—

"Ahhhh!"

I whirled around to see a shadow running towards us. The rain was coming down harder, and at first, I couldn't make out the person. But as they came closer, I gasped in surprise to see Tristan sprinting towards us.

"Oh! Tristan—" I pushed myself up from the ground to greet him, but he ran past me without even glancing my way. Just as he brushed past me, I could see Justin racing towards me with an alarmed expression on his face. Then, a high-pitched scream erupted from behind me.

Whirling around, I saw Tristan on top of Catherine again, strangling her by the neck. Gasping, I raced towards Tristan and seized his arm, trying to pull him off with my right arm. But Tristan elbowed me off and continued choking Catherine.

"Tristan!" I screamed, pushing myself up again and grabbing his arm. "What are you doing—"

My eyes widened when I caught a glimpse of his face. I could've been mistaken because of the rain, but I thought I saw tears in his eyes. His mouth twitched, and he opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something.

Suddenly, he broke out into a screaming fit and seized his head. Pulling his hair, he hit his head repeatedly. I stood in front of him, too shocked to move. Before I could snap out of my daze, Justin suddenly appeared from behind me and tackled Tristan to the ground.

Tristan thrashed around and continued screaming like a madman, scratching his face while Justin tried to control him from above. I moved forward to help Justin when I felt someone's hand clamp down on my left arm.

I cried out in pain as Aslan pulled me towards him. Glancing up, Aslan barked, "Let's go!"

I turned my eyes towards the direction he was looking out and gasped when I saw two horses in Violet's hands. Quickly, I tried to direct my attention towards the horses' legs, but Aslan slapped a hand over my eyes before I could do anything.

Gritting my teeth, I readied my mind to direct my Guang towards his hand when his hand suddenly lifted from my eyes. I turned to see Catherine pulling Aslan by the back of his shirt. Aslan grabbed his throat and choked as he stumbled backwards. Then, suddenly turning on his heel, he snatched the sword at his hip and pulled it out.

Pushing Catherine over, he stood over her and drew his sword up. Suddenly, the image of the soldier standing above Petal flashed before my eyes.

"No!"

My eyes flashed red; my gut jerked tightly as the warmth from my outstretched hand left. In a second, the blade had shattered into pieces. As the shards rained on to Catherine, I streaked towards Aslan, grasped him by the neck, and punched him in the face.

Although I wasn't able to hit him hard, the surprise caught him off guard, and he tripped over his feet. My eyes grew hotter as I stood over him with my fury boiling over. I glanced at his arm. Should I break that? Or maybe his legs? Or maybe...

I stared at his neck and took a step towards him.

"Wait!" Aslan gasped, holding out a shaking hand. "Wait—calm down—"

I could barely hear him over the rain as I took another step towards him. The warm feeling inside of me was buzzing, telling me it was ready to let loose. Aslan opened his hands up in frustration, trying to create a ball of fire only to have it extinguished the rain.

Crack!

Aslan's scream mixed with the sound of the rain pounding on the ground. Clutching his right leg, he stared up at me with tears in his eyes.

"Wait please—"

Crack! Crack!

Another howl rang through the air as his other leg and right arm hung limply. A faint pain struck my chest, but the desire to hurt Aslan blocked everything out.

"Stop—please, Sakura!"

How dare he try to—

"Hey!"

Violet's voice brought me out of my trance, and I glared over my shoulder to get her to piss off. She flinched when she met my eyes but pointed to her left. My eyes followed her finger, and I felt goosebumps rise along my body when I saw the blood-curling scene.

Immediately, I abandoned Aslan and raced past Violet. Gasping, I grabbed hold of Catherine who had Aslan's sword in her hands and was wobbling towards Tristan and Justin. She glanced up at me with blank eyes and yanked her arm out of my grasp. I paled, realizing Tristan and Catherine now had the same brainwashed look on their faces. 

I looked up in despair to see Tristan and Justin still fighting with each other. Tristan had a dagger in his hands and was on top of Justin. Both of their arms were shaking from resisting against each other. Justin could've easily toppled Tristan over, but I could see the same fear I was feeling in his eyes. We were both too scared to do or try anything.

What was going on? Why were these two suddenly attacking us? What was Violet doing to them?

I glanced over my shoulder at Violet and gritted my teeth when I saw her trying to pull Aslan on to a horse. Narrowing my eyes, I felt another jerk in my gut as the horses' legs buckled. Violet snapped her eyes up at me in fear, and I took a step towards them.

But before I could go any further, a loud ringing suddenly exploded inside of my head. I fell on all fours and squeezed my eyes shut as if that could block out the screaming in my head. My throat suddenly closed up, and I grasped at my neck, choking for breath. My heart began throbbing painfully, and I could feel something crawl up my throat.

Suddenly lurching forward, I retched, choking and coughing as the bitter and acidic taste plagued my tongue. For a second, as I opened my eyes, I couldn't see a thing. Then slowly, my vision returned, and I recoiled back in shock from the sight on the ground.

Blood. It was all blood. There was—

"No—don't—stop—!"

Suddenly remembering what was going on behind me, I spun around to see Catherine holding a sword above the two boys struggling on the ground. Justin gritted his teeth and kicked Tristan off him. Just as Catherine swung the sword down, Justin rolled out of the way and popped back on to his feet.

Catherine heaved the sword back up without hesitation and started for Tristan who slowly stumbled to his feet. I pushed myself up when I realized Tristan's eyes were set on Catherine. Charging towards Catherine, I wrapped my arm around her and pushed her down.

She wailed and thrashed underneath me like a fish. Behind me, I could hear Justin yelling at Tristan to wake up. I grabbed her by the wrist and stared at her arm; I'll just break her arm and then—

A hand suddenly wrapped over my heart and squeezed it painfully. Coughing, blood dribbled out of my mouth and hit Catherine's face. She didn't seem fazed at all and continued trying to push me off.

It was strange. Her eyes weren't even focusing on me, but they glued to Tristan. It was like the two of them were out for each other only. I glanced over my shoulder and gritted my teeth in frustration as I watched Justin and him thrash around in the mud.

This was all because Violet—

I paused. Violet. Why hadn't I thought of this earlier? She caused all of this so all I had to do was get her to withdraw this spell she put over them—

Squinting through the curtain of rain, I spotted her dragging Aslan to the forest. I gasped; I couldn't reach her from her, and even if I could, there wasn't anything I could do in my weakened state right now. 

I glanced down at Catherine who was still struggling to get out of my grasp. Suddenly, an idea popped up in my head. What if I just...?

Preparing myself for another wave of pain, I directed my attention to Catherine's arm. I could feel the familiar warmth in my head spinning and pushed the feeling out as hard as I could.

Pop!

In an instant, the world in front of me went black, and I couldn't see anything. I could still feel the rain drumming down on my head and hear the cries of Tristan as Justin attempted to hold him down, but I was blind.

I reached up and touched my eyes, rubbing them and blinking to try and get my vision back, but nothing I did helped.

I'd run out of power.

~~~~~

Wow, time goes by so fast guys. It's almost the end of January. I hope ya'll are doing well and staying safe at home!

If you enjoyed, please drop your thoughts in the comments below and hit the star :))

I'll see you guys next Sunday <33