Mira found herself running in her dream.
It was very stuffy and hot. She found herself sweating as she kept running in that darkness.
After moving several steps forward, she found herself stopping to check her surroundings. She placed her hands around the walls. She was in a very narrow and constricted space that stretched forever forward and back. It was almost like a metal tunnel not completely that.
Mira could hear echoes of her own footsteps following her as she moved forward. Suddenly, out of nowhere, she heard a voice," M-I-R-A... " ,a distant voice, calling her name. A voice that felt very warm. A voice that felt like home.
She looked around, trying to locate the source but she could not pinpoint it. It seemed like it was coming from all around.
" Who is it? I can hear you. Where are you? "
Mira called out in her sleep.
" Come to me, my little one. I know you have been searching for me. Come to me. You must... "
The voice whispered and growled , all at once.
Mira felt a strange pull. She kept walking towards the source but it kept getting further and further away.
" Wait... please wait. I can't find you. "
She called out.
" You can be a little one. You absolutely can. "
The voice urged her to keep moving forward.
" How? It's too dark. I cannot see anything properly. " She complained, almost kicking her feet in frustration.
The voice chuckled and scoffed.
" Darkness should never be your problem, little one. You were born with it. All you need to do is embrace it. Let your body accept its fate. Let your spirit flow. Let it take you to where you belong... "
As the voice spoke, Mira found her eyes, slowly adjusting to her surroundings. But before she could completely take in the view and understand where she was, her mother appeared in front of her from nowhere.
She slapped her face left and right.
" Mira, wake up... Mira, what are you blabbering about? Where are you going? What can't you see? "
Mira was trying to understand her mother's sudden hostility when she realized the voice belonged to some males and not her mother.
The three boys were bent over her, shaking her, slapping her, and what almost seemed like strangling her as well.
She pushed them all and sat up.
" What the heck! Were you trying to kill me? "
She asked coughing and adjusting the collar of her dress. She had actually been sweating and her dress was wet from the inside.
She was about to give them a piece of her mind but stopped when she looked at their terrified eyes.
" Wh... what's the matter? Why do you all look so shocked? Did I do something wrong? What happened?"
Mira asked with utmost caution.
" Mira... " Kian was the first one to react.
" Yes... " She looked at him, almost scared.
" For the split of a second, your eyes became exactly like those Dark Mages.... You were floating up. Your heart beat was gone. We thought we lost you.... "
He looked like she was about to cry.
Xen came to the rescue and thumped his shoulder.
" But it's alright now. We managed to pull you down and bring you back to reality. It must be the potion that you took. Your body must be reacting weirdly to the drug. "
Mira tried to stand up but she had to grab onto Braze for support because her head felt light and her vision darkened.
" Careful. You must be exhausted... " Braze helped her sit down.
" Why? What did I even do to be this worn out? " She looked at their faces but none of them looked back in her eyes.
" Doesn't matter. Just try to rest a little. You will feel better. " Xen came forward and pushed her gently back. " Just look at what we prepared while you were sleeping. "
He showed her around the cave, trying to boast and also distract her at the same time.
" Our little retreat away from civilization... warm and cozy... isn't it? "
Mira returned his smile.
" Will we be living here? You guys made beds and everything. " She joked.
" Seems like that. There is no going back until we are sure we won't be persecuted ... "
Kian sank back on his leafy seat.
" The Watchers will have all our details by now. They know where we live and everything about our families." Xen said.
" Then should we not try to convince them that we are the good guys? Maybe they would be able to help us figure out our problem. They have weapons and resources. They were able to hold off those Mages... "
Mira talked enthusiastically.
" Mira... that's not how things work... " Xen pressed her shoulder and explained.
"We are suspects. We don't know whom to trust and whom to not except for ourselves. We need to figure out more about this planet called Chemora and why and how we ended up here... We need to do our own research Mira. The world doesn't share your innocence. We might be running into a devil while trying to evade the darkness..."
Xen looked at his hands as he talked, almost as if he was talking to himself, rather than Mira.
Everyone fell silent.
" I think it was my father... "
Mira's sudden proclamation made them all turn towards her.
" In my dream... there was a voice calling me... I think it was my father... "
She sat up, her eyes filling with glee.
" Maybe. Or perhaps it was just your imagination... "
" No! "
Mira turned at Braze and growled.
" I know the feeling. It was very real... I could feel his presence... "
The boys noticed her eyes twinkling with excitement.
" Maybe we should try and locate your mother... she would be able to help you out with this... "
Braze tried to soothe her nerves but she swept his hand away.
" No she wouldn't. My mother and father have an estranged relationship. She never talked to me about him... never... no matter how much I wanted... This time, it's up to me. I will find him. I will solve the missing part of my life's puzzle. "
She put her hands together with such a determination, that the boys could say nothing but stare at each other.