Tainted Dreams - By Raine

[Raine]

Prologue
Eerie silence was in this large hall, something that maybe shouldn’t have been happening at the time. Seeing as how there were several people in this one small place. All of them, still as a solid rock, unmoving, almost like they were not even breathing as well, they seemed to be waiting for something, waiting for someone to come. The large room almost seemed like it hadn’t been entered for hundreds of years, dust lay on the chairs that remained empty. The imprints that used to be on the cushions seemed to have faded, though it was clear that there used to be a picture of sorts that used to be on them. The walls almost seemed like they should be cracking, though the walls remained, as they should. A nice creamy-ivory color, holding vines growing up them. Though if you got closer, then you would see that they were not real ivy plants, but merely just the painting seemed to look rather real. It was a trick of the eye so to say, though that was the point of this place. Some things were supposed to look like they were real, while other things really did look like they didn’t belong there. Or that a piece of this place was missing, and there really wasn’t much anyone could do about it. Though all of the eyes seemed to then look towards the large wooden oak doors, as they swung open. At first, nothing but the cold wind seemed to blow through these doors, the darkness of the outside seemed to be even colder then the winter wind that had blown into the once warm room. The people that had once been standing there then stood from their spots. All of them were covered by the different colored cloaks that they were wearing, to reveal that the people that were in the room, were all female, minus the exception of a couple of the men that were there as well. Standing there another minute, it was clear that they were waiting for whoever had pushed open the doors in the first place to then make the appearance that needed to be made. The clock that was hanging on the walls minutes clicked away, at least another five minutes ticked by, before then someone walked into the room. Also covered by clock, though this was the only one that seemed to be a black color. The person that was in the cloak seemed to make no eye contact with the people in the room, the grey-lavender colored eyes seemed to remain right in front of whoever it was.
The person made it to the front of the room, looking towards the walls before then turning to look at them after another minute. Letting the hood come to drop off, and then lay on the now female’s shoulders. Her face was pale; the red-brown hair that she held was long, but pulled back into a tight bun at the time. The eyes that had once not looked at anyone, now turned to look at all of them. Her eyes shown with no emotion, no fear, pain, or happiness, or joy, nothing, there was anything there to be seen at all. All she seemed to be doing now was looking at all of them. Almost like she was studying all of them, her thin lips then parted as she began to speak after another few minutes had passed by. After she had finished looking over the people that had been left here now. “We have all come here, for one reason. The reason we all know, but are forbidden to properly speak of in our homes,” Pausing a minute when she saw the movement of a few people nodding to what it was that she had been saying. “We have lost many of our daughters and of our sons. We have lost many of our sisters and brothers as well. This is not news to us, but we are the only ones who have managed to stop the two of them. The ones who have managed to seal away their powers.” She paused again. It was something she seemed to be doing only after a few more words that she had said. It was because she was waiting to see how it was that the others were acting now, what it was that they were thinking. Almost as if she could really read their minds, like she could be the one to know just what it was that they were currently thinking. “And yet, now even our own people shun us, when they once praised us for the gifts that we do have. Because they cannot truly accept for who it is that we really are. And because of this, we are being ordered to seal away our own powers, the powers that we have been blessed with, or else they will kill all of us.” Stopping again when she then heard another one of the females then speak up. “Are you saying that we have to do as they say? That even though we were the ones who have suffered so much, that we must be the ones to give up what it is we were born with?” She spoke. She seemed to be one of the younger females there, her hair was a silky black color, though then there were also streaks of red in her hair as well. The almost black eyes seemed to be challenging in a since towards the other female who had been speaking just briefly before.
“We do not, we cannot just give into those humans like we are beneath them. We are no where near beneath them at all.” She could feel the gazes of the other females slowly starting o turn to look at her, only to then look away again when the other female then spoke up again.
“You bring up several good points, I do strongly believe in each and every one of them. I honestly do. But we must do what we are told. I have another idea though. One that will ensure that our powers will be passed down upon the people that is to come into the future. The people who are to be fully worthy of our powers, and when they need them most.” She stopped when the whispers went around the room. Some people seemed to be rather curious about all of it, though another part of them were also wondering if this was something that they should just be doing in general. What if it backfired on them? Even if they hadn’t even heard of what the actual plan was just yet, and if it was something that would actually happen or not. The female then spoke up once more and shook her head a bit, not allowing the other’s in the room to now speak any longer, mainly because she knew if she didn’t finish what it was that she had started to say, then they would never really understand what it was that needed to be said. “Calm down, calm down all of you.” She then spoke. The room was soon silent after she had said this, even if it was quite obvious that many of them there were still fairly confused or concerned about what it was that was going to happen, or what might be happening. “This is not something that you need to get so worked up over, please, do let me finish what I was saying, so that I can get what you really think of this, I want to know what you may think, but I will warn you. This is something that will help us always remain, even if we are not really around, but it will help pass on our powers, our gifts, as I have just told you a few minutes before, again someone else interrupted her.
“But---“ Though the other female was quickly cut off.
“No buts just let me tell you this. Let me tell all of you what it is that I mean, what it is that I have planned for all of you.” The female who had spoken first then said. “There is a spell, that we must do, something that will ensure for us to pass down our powers. For who knows, if they doe come back, if they do manage to break free. With us releasing our power, it just might loosen the grip on the binds that hold those two captive. It just might be a risk that we will have to take, though I have reasons to believe that they will not come out so easily, that we will have time before they will be able to break out. And hopefully, by that time, if that time does come, that the people who are blessed with our powers, that they will be watched over by the guardians that have always watched over us…” Her grey-purple eyes seemed to scan over everyone around her before she then opened her mouth to then speak again, “For if the people that are blessed with our powers are not ready, then their world will be doomed, if they do break out, because I am sure that if they do break out, then they will have become more powerful then they were now. When they were still free.”
“But how will we know, that this spell of yours will work, how do we know that if he agree to do what it is that you want us to do, will not back fire on us, and cause us to die?” The female who had began to question in the first place, and then spoke up. “It is true, that there is a risk that some will die, that we will all die. But there is more of a chance that we will continue to live; we will just not have our powers. Now Aries, you must relax, please, do allow me to relax. You will remain in one peace for the time being, however much time that we may have left here in this room…in this place.” The female who had been speaking first then said. Aries, didn’t seem to say anything for a moment, almost as if she were debating whether or not she really wanted to take the risk of speaking again, or if she wanted to continue with what it was that she had began to question in the first place. It was clear that she was not so much of a fan risking her life, just because the humans were starting to getting worried about them and their powers. Which seemed to be a rather stupid thing to her, all of the people here, had been doing nothing at all to harm them. And they probably never would do anything that would harm that at all, they saw no reason to do so; and yet, the people are still afraid of them, and therefore, her people, would be the ones to suffer the out come, and yet, she had to hope, that if she could get them to agree to what it was that she had per posed, they maybe they would let themselves be sacrificed. Sure, maybe when she was asking them to do is selfish to an extent, but she also knew that if they didn’t do this, who knew what other, things were going to happen to them, and what was going to happen in the future. They were not immortal creatures, they were only humans, or at least most of them were, some were of other creatures and could very easily not be considered as human, but all the same, they all held the appearance of a human, and they could all easily sacrifice themselves, if they were going to do that, then they would have to do this willingly. She knew that, and she wasn’t about to push them anymore on what it was that they had to think about. They needed to think about what it was that they were about to do, and they had to accept it willingly. “Shall we take a vote then?”
Speaking up once more, several minutes of had filled the room. “Yes. That sounds like it would be a good thing to be doing.” Said two of the females in union. The two eyes met and then a half, almost weak smile came to their faces after they had spoken at the same time. So it had been decided then, they would have a vote, sure that was sort of like forcing people to chose which they were going to do, but at the same time, she was not about to say that if the majority said yes to sacrificing themselves, that she would make all of them do it anyway, if they really did feel strongly against even giving up their lives in general, “Alright, all in favor in taking part in sacrificing themselves?” She then questioned. About eight hands then came up, slowly, but it was a positive answer as to what it was that they wanted. After she had counted the number she then nodded, “Alright, and those of you who do not want to sacrifice them, and remain here?” She waited another five came up. She paused a moment and then nodded. “It seems that we have reached a choice about what it going to happen here…now the question is, who here is going to go along with what it is that they have chosen.” She could see the uneasiness sweep over the people there once this was said, though she knew that while they were all nervous or whatever it is that they had running through their minds at the time, was things that they were probably both rethinking what they had decided, and trying to tell themselves that the things that they had chosen to do, to agree to were the right choices and they had done the right thing. “I will be opening the portal now, once stepping through here, you will have done the deed, you will no longer be apart of this world.” She then spoke and sucked in a breath, those eyes that had once looked gentle now became hard with concentration before they then closed. The room was silent, nobody dare spoke, and it almost was like nobody was breathing once more, almost afraid that they were going to be destroying what they knew would be the end of their lives.
It took a good few more minutes, before anything happened, but then in the semi-dark room now, there was a sudden bright flash of light. It faded from a icy blue color, to an almost pale sea green color, and then from that, if faded to more of an ambary-white color, the portal remained open, even after the female had opened her eyes and turned to look back towards the group of people now. “As I have said before, simply step through here, and then you will no longer be with us. I bless all of you, and I want you all to know that we are making the choice that will one day help the children of our future.” Yes, it was corny, but she had a feeling that it would help them, even if it were only a little bit. Again nobody seemed to really move for a long period of time, before people then began to slowly rise from their seats and walk towards the portal, they were all hesitant, and they looked like they were moving in slow motion. They would step through this portal, and each time a different color would shine brightly from the portal, before they would all just disappear. And each time one of her old friends, of any of them, would step through the portal; she would murmur a “Blessed Be.” Before they would disappear in a bright flash of light. Though when the female, who had spoken against this before, Aeries, came to the portal the female half smiled and then bowed down to her. “Blessed Be Aeries let your spirit roam free.” And with that Aeries then stepped through the portal and disappeared, she had been the last one to step through the portal. Besides the female who had opened it, and she looked around the empty room once more and took in what it looked like, the scent of it, and she recalled the people that she had once called her friends. For this would be the last time that she ever really got to think of them, the last time that she would ever see this room. And with that, she then stepped through the door, a dark deep violet flash of light came from the portal, and once she had stepped through, the portal closed. And that was it, there were no more girls there, the room was now silent, and looked as if nobody had ever been there in the first place.
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[Raine]

Chapter One
Darkness seemed to hold the room captive, and even with the darkness every where there seemed to be shadows bouncing off the chairs that seemed to be around the room, or off of the thick yet soft looking bed that was in the center of the room, pushed up against the poster covered wall. Movement on the bed seemed to be fast and sudden as I quickly sat up from under the covers and groaned under my breath. Green-grey eyes seemed to study the darkened room, almost as if looking for something that had woken me up from my sleep, though I knew well what it had been that had woken me up at that time. I had that dream again, why did I keep having that dream? Was I supposed to get some sort of message from it or something? ‘Jeez…’ I thought to myself as I then moved to push my black bangs over of my lightly freckled face now. I sucked in a breath of air, taking in the scents of my room, everything seemed to have a familiar scent to me, which was how I liked it, I didn’t like it when I could tell something was out of place, or that something had been moved by someone that wasn’t myself. Shaking my head once, and the black hair that was still pulled back into a now even messier ponytail seemed to follow my head movement. I leaned over my best and towards the small nightstand beside, pulling out a small white box that almost seemed to glow in the not-so-well-lit room of mine, and I had to close my eyes a bit when it came time for me to then flick on my lighter. Placing it on the correct end of the cigarette that I had pulled out, opening my eyes once more I adjusted to the dark room, and saw the red burning color of the cigarette, placing it to my lips I inhaled the sweet almost spicy taste of the smoke, before then out haling it, leaning back against my headboard as I continued to just sort of take in the smoke and then let it escape into a cloud in front of my eyes a brief moment later. “Davies going to kill me if that damned fire alarm goes off.” I mumbled to no one in particular it was just another one of those many things that I tended to do a lot of the time, and it wasn’t something that was just going to go a head and change about me either, or I hadn’t really thought so anyway. “ Arg. ” Murmuring as I moved out from the dark blue and black plaid blanket that had been over me just a moment before, redoing the black strands of hair that had fallen from the ponytail before, and moved moved over to the mirror that was on the other side of my room. The darkly painted wood of the mirror was mainly covered up my many sort of pictures, many of them with just myself and one of my best friends in them, though another few of them were pictures of the two dogs that I had as well. Shaking my head as the lame black bangs fell back over my green-grey colored eyes, and I inhaled another puff of the spicy smoke.
I knew that it was still too early in the morning to actually go out and do something, even if I had already been up for a couple hours since I had that dream. It wasn’t something that I could say I enjoyed very much, seeing as how Summer break was about sleeping in and not doing much else besides hanging out with friends. So instead I had decided to sort of just lounge back in my room, looking around the few blank spots on the wall that hadn’t yet been covered up with posters of the many bands that I did like, or my small sort of stickers that I had gone out and bought, one of my favorites had always been the one that said, “The customer is always right. Santa Claus is real and Republicans really care.” It had always been one of the ones that I could agree with, though it wasn’t one of those things wheres I could just go out and say oh yeah, you republicans suck, then again, when I came around to thinking about it, I don’t think I ever really held anything against them in general, I had always just found it fun to make fun of them. Although, democrats were fun to make fun of as well, I just simply had never been able to find any of those sort of stickers that had anything to do with democrats Stretching a bit I stood up from the white chair, that had been attacked with sharpies by numerous friends of mine, saying many weird things on it, one of those things where my step mom came to really dislike my room, which was mainly because the once pink and girly room came to be something that was much more of a room that fitted me more, I would never really label myself, but it was something that one of my many siblings would claim as a rather ‘punk’ or ‘emo’ sort of room, though I would never really agree with her about that, hey, I was allowed to express myself in any sort of way that I really chose to do so. And plus, who really believed in labeling other people, it was something that shouldn’t be done, because we aren’t the sort of things that really need to be labeled. Passing out of my room and then now back down the hall, I let myself then come to walk into the kitchen. The sounds of the tv were on in the background which could only really mean that either Davie was up, or my step mom was up. My guess had been that it was Davie , mainly because my step mom never really stayed up this late, even when she wasn’t working the next day. Pushing myself up onto of the marble counter leaned over it, and peered into the other room. Wrinkling my nose a bit as I realized that it was my brother, and then some other girl with him, they had always claimed that they were just friends, though I could tell that they weren’t just simply friends, there had to be more then a just friends thing going on with those two, seeing as how it was about four in the morning, and she was still there. Her bright red-orange hair seemed to stand out against the black of Davie ’s sweatshirt, and her face was still lightly freckled, covering mainly her nose for the most part, she was wearing a pink-red colored tank top, and then short jean shorts. How anyone could ever really ware something like that, I never knew, but apperantly that was what she liked to wear anyway.
A pink tinge came to my cheeks when I then saw that I had been caught looking at the time of them by, Maia. Slowly letting myself push away from the counter I placed my feet back down on the ground and was about to leave when I then heard myself being addressed. “Hey, what are you doing up at this time of hour shortie?” Maia then said from her spot, straightening up from where she had just been leaning against my brother. I cringed once when I heard the name that I had been given by her, sure, I wasn’t the tallest girl around for someone my age, but I was most certainly not about to let her continue to call me shortie, it was like my brother calling me Ille, just because that was how my name was ended.
“It’s Ashille. You of all people should know that by now, you’ve been dating my brother for how long now? Three, four years maybe?” I stated sarcasticly as I narrowed my eyes a bit, of course now I didn’t have much of a choice but to move into the other room now. I knew that I was going to get the classic blush from Davie, and then him mumbling that they were just friends, though he sort of just sort me an annoyed look, he was way to used to me making comments like that with him, and hey, I couldn’t help it, and it wasn’t really that I didn’t like Maia, she was a nice enough girl, but I didn’t know if I fully trusted her or not, and so that was sort of my own fault. But of course, I would never admit to it being my own fault.
“Oh would you be quiet and go and do something else in your room? It may be the start of summer, but that doesn’t mean you should already be starting to adjust to staying up into the ugly hours of the night…morning thing…” Davie then said, shifting in his spot once and glanced towards Maia for a second, and then looked back towards me. I raised a brow a bit when I heard that, and shook my head once, sitting down on the arm of the couch and then leaned back against the cushioning of it.
“Well, look who’s talking.” I then said after he had heard that. “I mean, your up at the same hours as me, and you have a girl over. I mean, if your mom was going to make a big deal out of this, then she probably would be more mad at you, for having Maia over now.” Crossing my arms over my chest now with a bit of a smug looking expression coming over my facial features now. “But that would just be my guess anyway.” I said as I stuck my tongue out at him slightly, before then turning my gaze towards the TV and then back to him, to see him roll his eyes once more.
“Oh would you just shut up Ille.” He then mumbled, it being his own way of giving up for the time, or when he didn’t really want to have to deal with me, or whatever it was that we had been talking about before hand.
Brothers could be so annoying, especially when they had their crushes around, if they felt like they needed to act more manly then they really were. That’s what I thought so far.
“So do you know if you have any plans for later today?” Maia then asked, as if she were trying to break the silence that had come over the room. And I knew that she was talking to me at the time, as well. But I didn’t say anything right away, mainly because I was trying to keep myself from making a sarcastic remark.
“I’ll probably be hanging out with Peyton and maybe that guy she has been telling me about. Why?” Shrugging a bit as I turned my gaze towards the bright haired female.
“You and Peyton and that other girl certainly spend a fair amount of your time together.” Maia said with with a bit of a raised brow.
“And your point would be…?”
“Well, I mean, what happens when you guys go off to collage? You’ll need to have other friends besides Ms. Skater and Ms. I-Had-Children-When-I-Was-Fifteen.” I could feel my fists clench at this statement and opened my mouth to then defend the two friends I had. Though I was surprised when I then Davie stand up.
“Hey, now was that really called for? I mean, sure, they’re my kid sister’s annoying friends, but they’re still coool, and you shouldn’t just go around and insult them like that, or in fact, say the things you just said in general.” He paused a moment as if he was waiting to see if Maia was going to say anything, and then saw she hadn’t planned on saying anything just yet. “And Blaire’s twins are really cute anyway, there isn’t anything wrong with that.”
A smile twitched at my lips once I heard what it was that Davie had said, and I nodded once. “I totally agree with that.”
Maia rolled her eyes slightly before she then stood up from her spot. “Whatever. I’ll see you later Davie.” She stated simply, moving out of the house and we watched herwalk back down the drive way, from the arge windows, well until we couldn’t see her anymore.
“Well, someone suddenly got pretty protective of my friends. That’s something that one does not normally see around here.” I teased him, sticking my tongue out at him. Plopping down on the couch next to him once he had sat back down on it. “Your going to stick that tongue out at the wrong person one day, and they are to make sure that it’s disposed of.” I couldn’t help but laugh a bit once I had heard that and shook my head just a bit. Now there was one of those things that my brother would say in attempting to freak me out. Though he had yet to actually manage to do just that.
“Oh is that so huh? And why would someone go and do that?”
“How should I know? I mean, you could be going through one of those weird that you do go through from time to time.
“Phases huh? And would you care to go through a couple of these so called phases?”
“Well, there was time when you wanted to be a sky diver, or stunt double, and then there was another time when you wanted to become a professional motorcyclist.” I could tell that he probably could have gone on and on with all of those weird little things that I had always been rather fasinated with since I had been a little girl, and hey, it’s not like I had much control over what it was that I was into.
I could feel a snicker start to form at my features. “Hey whoa, that was not my fault. I was simply…curious about these kinds of things.” I defended.
“Uh-huh…”
“And how would that get my tongue discarded anyway??” There was a pause and all we could hear was the soft sounds of the TV in the background, before my broither seemed to finally say something, his mouth opening and closing at least once.
“I have no clue…It hyst does.” Davie said with his smug expression coming to his features. I laughed once more and d in some way or another. It just would be weird if they did. I shook my head my brother could be so lame sometimes, as well, and yet I knew that I wouldn’t have him or anyone else for that matter to be changed.
“I hope you realize that what you just saud nade you sound like a complete idiot.” Stating this once I had managed to stop laughing.
“Well, we all know that you’re a complete idiot yourself as well. And don’t try to deny it either.” Davie said and looked towards me with a teasing wink.
“Me? And idiot? Never! Whatever gave you the idea that I could ever be anything of that sort?” I questioned him with a mock hurt sort of expression. Placing a hand over my heart as if he had just caused me great pain.
“Drama queen much?” Davie said after he had watched my little act that I had just done.
“Indeed I am….When I chose to be.”
“Oh yes of course. I mean, your totally not sarcastic, drama queenish, snobby, little girl.”
“First off. I’m only those things when you or anyone else gives me reason to do so. And I am not a little girl.” I snorted slightly before sticking my tongue out at him once more. He seemed to chuckle before then moving out from his spot on the couch. And once more standing up he then stretched, allowing a yawn to then come from his mouth.
“Of course your not, whatever was I thinking. I am simply the older brother that was simply looking out for you, by pointing out the things that seemed to stand out about you.” He said with his own sort of dramatic touch to it.
“You have got to be one of the weirdest boys I know. Which is saying something, considering the fact that I know tons of really weird boys.”
“Me? I couldn’t ever be weird, please, I am the sensible child…person here.” Of course he was joking a the time, I knew that muych was clear, at least to me. Though I could also feel a sudden wave of tiredness suddenly wash over me. Knowing that I should probably be going back to my room, if not to sleep, then to at least relax once more.
“Mmmmm…Well, you just keep believing that. I’m going to bed…again..” I then murmured as I attempted to cover up a yawn that I then felt escape my lips.

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