LAURA

I've longed for this moment since my mind woke up inside the cage Riga put me in. When I was a little child, my father discovered that my powers were growing stronger than they imagined. He had me checked by the shamans and sages, the process was uncomfortable and long, I hate being put on my back for long and I discovered just how much I hated it that day because I snapped and killed every living soul in that room. I combined my soul with Azra, which made me more powerful than I've ever been. I wrecked havoc all over the realm. I don't remember doing any of this. I don't remember my actions but I know that why my father proposed The Dran practice. My powers can't be at it's highest level because if it is, things are going to get real ugly real soon.

There's never been a time where I need to recharge, well then again I've never been drained of power before. I've been inside the Golden Water a thousands time and it's to perform The Dran and I don't know how this would feel.

The temple is empty when we arrive, Gaea most sent everyone home because it's risky for anyone to see me like this, apart from being a public enemy, my blood lines are becoming more visible which would kill anyone that sees it. Gaea is the High Priestess and she has some certain powers that makes her immune to my blood.

The moment we step out of the portal, I fall down because I don't have any strength holding me up. The burn bruise is visible on my wrist and ankle, I catch glimpse of it as I curl up in a ball, shivering from the cool breeze in the temple.

"You're getting worse, we need to get you inside the Golden Water now! I'll get it ready, wait here." Gaea says and rushes away.

Take your time, Gaea, it's not like I have anywhere else to be, the dungeon doesn't count. I want to joke but I'm quick to realize that there's nothing worth joking about my life at the moment.

My eyes closes and I don't know how long it takes for Gaea to prepare but she returns when she's done. I feel her hand on my shoulder, she gives me a shake before whispering, "it's time, El-Sah-El, you need to get up."

I want to keep my eyes closed but I know I need to stand up and get inside the Golden Water before it's too late and the damage becomes pronounced. I untangle myself from the ball I curled myself into, and drop my hand on the ground before opening my eyes, my sight is a little blurry. I close my eyes and shake my head before opening it again. It's still blurry.

Gaea's hand come around my torso, pulling me up before walking me to the Golden Water. I drop my hand on the edge of the tub, bending my body over. Gaea rubs my back, encouraging me to enter. Sighing, I raise my leg one after the other into the water until I'm sitting inside, I hug my legs to my chest as I await Gaea's instructions but before she can say anything the water color changes to a glowing bright white light.

I look at Gaea for what it means because the water has never done this before. "It means you've changed, El-Sah-El."

Frowning, what's that supposed to mean?

"You've always been special because you have your demons even though they are locked deep inside you. Your experience on Earth has altered that. The first way for you to heal is to let that go." I raise my eyebrows at her, she needs to elaborate. "The only way for you to defeat Riga and claim your father's throne as your is to regain your strength and unlock all your powers, you can't do that if you're holding on to the good part of your life. The reason your father never gave you a choice to begin with is because he knew you might one day defeat the darkness like you almost did on Earth, right now Di Hipsodat need you, the real you, Lurytendra, El-Laura-El El-Sah-El Di Hipsodat. And the only way to do that is to let that part of your life go. Let him go."

"It hasn't been– it's just– I was just with Kai. I can't... He... Gaea, I can't..." My sight begins to go dark but not before hearing Gaea's voice.

"You need to let him go, El-Sah-El. You need to."

My eyes shoot open in a familiar place, Kai's room. I frown and look down at myself I'm wearing a familiar yellow sundress and strap sandals. I look up and see my reflection in the mirror. I raise my hand to touch my hair, it the hairstyle I've always wanted to do, the curly hair I always begged Zazie to do for me but Kai ended up doing it, but there's something different about my reflection, it's not the same. I look normal looking at myself but in the mirror it's looks like the person staring back at me is the shell of myself. She looks broken. Dying if not dead. The black vein lines are visible from her forehead to her neck and her exposed arms. She–

"Laura?" I freeze at the sound of the voice I've longed for. I turn away from the mirror to see Kai standing in the mirror looking alive and well.

A smile spread on my face before I rush to him, jumping on him, my legs wrap around his waist and arms around his neck, pulling into a suffocating hug.

"What? How–?" I remove my head from his neck to look at him. "You're alive. I knew it. I knew you're alive, I–"

I stop talking when a smirk appears on his face. I know Kai and I'd like to think I've seen all of him including the bad part when I was in his head but this person staring back at isn't Kai, and I soon confirm this when I feel something sharp go inside me, I look down to see him holding a dagger to my stomach, turning it. I groan in pain and look at him once more to see Riga. "Hello, Laura. Did you miss me?" He asks with a devilish smirk before pushing me off him.

I fall on the ground with a thud. Riga approaches me with his arms behind him, he comes walking around me in circles. "Look at you, the might El-Laura-El, look what love turned you into. You look like a scared little child. Where is the warrior that destroyed an entire planet without flinching. You look pathetic kneeling on the ground like that."

Before I get the chance to talk he grabs fistful of my hair and yank my head back, forcing me to look forward and what's there? It's like a memory playing in front of me, it's one of my worse memory, it's me kneeling in front of Kai, my hands are pressed against his cheek as I begged him to wake up.

I feel the environment change until I'm back at the place my suffering began, the woods near the amusement park, but there's something different about this memory. It's just Kai and Riga. Kai is on his knees with Riga behind him and his hand on Kai's forehead, holding his head back, it's until I walk closer that I notice the dagger he's holding on his neck.

"Recognize this?" Riga asks, showing me the dagger. It looks like mine but that's not possible, I conjure all my weapon. How did Riga get his hands on my dagger?

He doesn't give me the chance to talk before moving his hand and slits Kai's throat, it all happened so fast. "No!" I scream and rush to Kai's body laying cold on the floor. "No. No, no, no, no."

"You know you did this, you killed him." I look up but Riga isn't here and I'm back in what looks like Kai's room but instead it's filled with mirrors and the reflection of me in the first mirror I looked when I first got here is in all the mirrors. It's like my worse nightmare, been surrounded in the broken version of myself.

"It's your fault he's dead." A broken version says from the mirror behind, I look at the direction but another adds from my side. "You killed him."

"You should have left him alone."

"This is all your fault."

"You killed him."

"You killed him."

"This is all your fault."

The voice keeps coming and coming until I can't take anymore, I close my eyes and fall on my knees and do the only thing I can do. "Stop!" I scream. And the voices stops. I open my eyes and see nothing, it's like I'm in a hollow sphere with all memories of Kai on replay from the very first moment we met, the first thing I said to him. 'Where am I?' to the last 'Are you okay?'

It's my fault. Kai is gone because of me. I just feel bad because I didn't get to say goodbye. Gar said he's not dead but he's gone, vanished like he never existed. And his sister is coming for me. I have to be ready for her and I can't do that without going all out.

Riga sits on my father's throne like it's made for him. Announcing my execution like it's his call. 

I am Lurytendra El-Laura-El El-Sah-El Di Hipsodat.

My eyes shoot open from under the Golden Water. I can feel the change in me, I don't feel weak anymore. And the power rush is something I've missed. I lift my head from under the water and look at my skin, it's all healed up.

I see Gaea and Gar standing in front of me smiling. "Welcome back El-Sah-El."

"Where is Azra?"

"I will take you to him." Gar offers. I guess he's atoning for his sins.

*****

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